


Piano For Beginners

by euphowolf



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Piano
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-28
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-03-25 08:13:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 57,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13830096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/euphowolf/pseuds/euphowolf
Summary: Nico: an aspiring actress with two months to master the piano. Maki: the piano teacher assigned to her. What could go wrong?





	1. Prelude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prelude: musical composition, usually brief, that is generally played as an introduction to another, larger musical piece.

**i.**

As a rule, Nico Yazawa didn’t get nervous.

Obviously, there were a few exceptions - like when she was going to the dentist and she knew she hadn’t flossed in several days, for example, or when Nozomi, her best friend who also happened to be her agent, was still not home more than an hour after she said she would be. 

But you didn’t become a fabulously famous actress by fretting about circumstances both in and out of your control. After five years of working alongside actresses she had always dreamed of meeting, nailing auditions, and enduring tons of rejections from casting directors who obviously didn’t know what they were missing out on, she had long learned to still her quickening heartbeat and racing thoughts. The trick was adopting the persona she wanted to present and convincing herself entirely that that was who she was. More often than not, she was successful. 

Standing now outside the door of a huge penthouse in an ultra-new apartment building, brushing absentmindedly at her cutest skirt and looking down at her low-key but fashionable black flats, however, an inexplicable sensation of  _ nervousness _ rose up in her throat.

She wasn’t sure why. Sure, the penthouse rent was probably worth more than several of her first few contracts added together, but then again, being in the entertainment world, she wasn’t a stranger to wealthy people. And yeah, she was here to learn a new skill, but that was just part of the job; an actress had to be a jack-of-all trades. She looked her best, the producers were paying for all her lessons, and her part in the movie was promised to be “huge.” She had no reason to be feeling anything but smugness right now. 

Still, she let her fingers linger on the doorbell. It was weird that she even had to be here, now that she thought about it; most of the time, her trainers came to her, or they met in a designated location. Nico rarely had to do house visits, and she couldn’t help but frown in annoyance at the thought that she probably would’ve been a lot more comfortable if she had been in familiar territory. She shook her head, then took a deep breath. This was stupid. She was acting like a total newbie. She rang the bell firmly, before she had time to hesitate again, and fixed her most cheerful smile to her face. A good first impression meant a good relationship, after all.

The smile faltered approximately three and a half seconds later, when the most beautiful woman in the world pulled open the door.

Now, Nico would be the first to admit that she might be just a teeny bit prone to exaggeration. What could she say? It was in her nature. But she was definitely,  _ definitely _ not exaggerating right now. This girl was  _ beautiful _ .

She was tall, taller than Nico (like most people), and slender, with dark red hair that Nico was certain was natural. Nico took in her pale skin, her violet eyes and sharp chin, and was almost offended by how perfectly her face was shaped. She didn’t even seem to have that much makeup on - at most, just the faintest hint of eyeshadow and some blush. Nico had to work with a lot of pretty women in her line of business, but few, maybe none, were on  _ this _ level of drop-dead gorgeous. 

She realized she was staring. With a considerable amount of effort, she managed to resummon the smile that had slipped from her grasp and mentally kicked herself for not looking up the woman beforehand. She had been woefully unprepared for this kind of surprise attack. 

“Hi!” Her tone was bright and confident, normal despite her brief shock. Thank god she was an actress. “Maki Nishikino, right? I’m Nico. Here for piano lessons?” Her cheeks colored at the sudden revelation that, if this was her piano teacher, she would potentially be spending a lot (a  _ lot _ ) of time with her.

The woman at the entrance looked her up and down, and Nico wondered if she liked what she saw. No, no, she needed to keep it professional here! She shifted curiously as the silence stretched, trying to peer around the girl and into her apartment. “Um, you were expecting me, I think?” 

Maki blinked and stepped aside automatically, holding the door open. “Yes…” she acknowledged slowly. Nico froze at that first word. The woman’s voice was refined and raspy, on the right side of nasally, so that it came out cute instead. Nico’s own voice was adorable, but this was a close contestant. “Sorry. Yazawa, right?” 

“Just Nico is fine!” She crossed the threshold, following the woman inside.  

The sight of a large, spacious living room with a sensible corner sofa and glass coffee table greeted her. Against the back wall was a nice bookshelf, and one or two abstract paintings served as decoration. The star of the show, though, was the gigantic grand piano, standing on a slightly elevated, stage-like area next to the window. 

“This is a nice place,” she remarked, a little in awe. It was kind of bare, but in terms of minimalistic chic, it was perfect. “Where should I put my stuff?”

“Just leave it by the door. On the hooks.” Nico did so, hanging up her coat and grabbing her phone out of her handbag. Maki turned to wait for her, then gestured to the piano bench. “You can sit here.”

Nico’s heart skipped a beat as she sat down. Was she - Yes, yes she was, Maki was indeed going to sit right next to her. The pianist took a seat to Nico’s left, as naturally as if she had been born there. 

“Alright,” she said. “I guess, to start off - what kind of experience do you have with piano? Or music in general?”

Nico winced. She suddenly wanted very badly to impress this girl, and admitting her shortcomings so early on was not a good way of doing that. “I’ve never really learned how to play an instrument before.”

Maki nodded pensively, her teeth catching at her bottom lip in thought. Nico darted her eyes away from that pretty mouth. Looking at it for too long might be dangerous for her health. “Can you read sheet music at least?”

Nico brightened. “Yeah! Kind of.”

“Well, that’s something. Why did you want to learn piano, again? If you don’t mind me asking.”

Confused, she considered the question for a moment. Hadn’t someone told her? She couldn’t imagine that Nozomi would forget to tell her new trainer simple details like her role in the movie, and what was expected of her. But now she remembered that it wasn’t Nozomi who arranged things this time, that her lessons had been scheduled by one of the movie’s co-producers. The carelessness was astounding. On the other hand, this was a perfect opportunity to get back on equal footing with Maki and wow her with her status as an elite actress. She grinned and took a deep breath, falling back on her tried-and-true charm. 

“Oh, my agent must’ve forgotten to tell you,” she began, fluttering her eyelashes a little. “Actually, I’m an actress. You might’ve heard of me? Seen me in a couple movies recently?” She paused for a reaction, but there was none, so she moved on.

“Well I landed the main lead in an upcoming film. The character’s like, a pianist, and the director wants it to be really authentic, so they wanted it to be me playing in all the piano shots. We’re only in pre-production right now so it’ll be a few months before we start actually filming, so in that time I need to learn enough to, I guess, be decent or something. And more importantly, convincing.” She couldn’t hide the hint of triumph in her voice, no matter how much she tried. She had gone through so many stupid roles and jobs for this, and sucked up so hard, and she was finally going to be the big star she always knew she would be. She was allowed to indulge. 

“Ah,” came the reply. 

Nico waited for more - an acknowledgement, surprise, praise, anything - but that was all Maki said. She squinted up at the red-haired girl; was it just her imagination, or was there a slightly displeased expression on that pretty face? Surely she was mistaken. After all, anyone could recognize what a privilege it would be to tutor the film industry’s next biggest actress. 

“Anyway,” she finally said, just to fill the awkward silence. “Sorry for springing that on you! Really, my agent should’ve filled you in beforehand. But yeah, it looks like we’ll be working together for awhile?”

She definitely wasn’t imagining the way the other girl’s lip curled this time, as if she had smelled something nasty. “So that’s why so many timeslots were scheduled for you,” she finally muttered, more to herself than to Nico. 

Nico furrowed her brow. This was not the response she was used to getting. Even people who didn’t normally watch a lot of movies had at least heard of her or seen her face in promotions. She was a girl with the patience of a saint, though, so she decided to excuse the rudeness. For now.

“Well, I need to be able to play the music. Oops, silly me, you should probably get a look at them right?” She stood up quickly to grab the score out of her bag and returned to the living room, where she handed it to the pianist. “Here you go. Ah, but the movie’s still in progress, so these can’t be leaked to the public, okay?”

Maki opened the folder and flipped through the pages. Nico watched in fascination as the redhead’s long fingers tapped lightly across the paper as she scanned the notes. There were three or four songs in total, she had been told, and she was expected to be able to play at least two of them by the start of filming. She said as much as Maki continued to peruse the sheet music, at which point the teacher’s lips pursed into a thin line.

“No,” she said abruptly, her voice curt.

Nico spluttered. “W-What do you mean, no?”

Maki ignored the question and instead pointed at the score. “Play the first note. On the piano. Right now.”

Nico blanched, but wiped her face of emotion immediately. So Maki wanted her to prove herself? Well, fine, she’d play that game. With some hesitation, she managed to find middle C on the piano (she knew that much, at least) and counted up the scale to herself until she hit G. She pressed it triumphantly with her left forefinger, and a clear, pretty sound rang out in the sunlit living room. 

“There. That one, right?”

Maki’s face remained impassive. “And the bass clef chord?”

Nico tilted her head. “Bass clef?” she echoed, caught off-guard. The term was an unfamiliar one, though maybe she had heard it in music class when she was in middle school.   
Maki simply sighed. “See, you don’t even know what that is. It takes weeks just to learn how to read notes and get down basic fingering techniques. And you need to  _ memorize _ these in - how much time do you have - three months? Do you think piano is some sort of  _ game _ or something?”

Nico was taken aback by the sudden outburst. “N-No, I -”

Maki plowed onward, barely pausing for breath. “These songs aren’t easy. This isn’t  _ acting _ , you can’t just pick it up on the fly-”

“Hey!” Nico had heard enough. She leapt to her feet, balling her hands into fists, and was pleased with how Maki stopped mid-sentence, her violet eyes widening in surprise. She glared down at the redhead sitting on the bench and hissed through gritted teeth, “Don’t you dare talk about acting like  _ you _ know anything about it.” The nerve of this girl! Nico leaned forward, until their faces were only inches apart. 

“What the hell do you know?” she demanded. “You’re just a goddamn piano teacher. I was slaving my ass off on sets while you were doing what, teaching rich people’s brats up here in your ivory tower? So what if I don’t know how to play? I worked my whole life to get this role, and I’m ready to work even harder to make it perfect. What’s  _ your _ excuse?” She was shaking by the time she finished her rant, and she had to blink away a few angry tears. Through blurry eyes, she saw the dumbfounded expression on Maki’s face, her stupid mouth with its full lips hanging open just a little.

Irritated at herself for losing her cool, she snatched the score back from the other girl. “Forget it,” she spat, not even bothering to turn around to speak as she strode across the living room, back towards the entrance, and began putting on her coat. “If you’re not good enough to teach me, then I’ll go find someone else.” 

“Wait!” From behind her, she heard Maki get up from the bench and follow her, but she resisted the urge to glance back, choosing to step into her shoes instead. 

“Wait,” she heard that melodious voice say one more time, but she was already pulling the front door open. She had done enough waiting the past few years, and she wasn’t going to let anyone hold her back anymore. 

She made it outside of the penthouse before belatedly realizing that the elevator would need to make its slow ascent up the ten-floor building anyway. She jabbed at the call button, then turned her head reluctantly to see Maki standing in the doorway, an inscrutable look on her face. 

“Have a nice life,” said Nico shortly, and because she couldn’t help but be a little petty, added snidely, “Enjoy watching me win an Oscar when the movie’s out.” It would be at least two years in the future, but she could afford to count her chickens now. The redhead opened her mouth, presumably to argue, but the elevator arrived with a  _ ding _ and Nico gratefully entered. 

She took a look at the front of the penthouse one more time, and the last thing she saw as the doors slid close was Maki, watching her with those piercing violet eyes. 

The only thought she had while exiting the apartment was, “What a waste of time.” 

 

**ii.**

Four days later, on a sunny Saturday afternoon, Nico was making a rather guilty phone call to her agent.

“Nozomi,” she groaned, dragging out the last syllable of her best friend’s name. “I need help.” They had known each other for so long and had been through so much together that she didn’t even bother initiating with a hello. Predictably, the girl at the other end of the line giggled.

“Well, tell me something I don’t know, Nicocchi.” Nico could picture her sleepy eyes narrowing as she grinned into the phone. “What’s up?”

Nico sighed. She hadn’t wanted to admit defeat, but time was ticking and even if filming wouldn’t start for a few months, she really needed to get her butt in gear. “So you know that piano trainer I was sent to?” 

“Let me guess. She was pretty, so you jumped her and now we have a sex scandal on our hands,” quipped Nozomi, her timing impeccable as always.

“What? Hell no. I mean yeah she was hot but - no, that’s not the point. The point is, she was a bitch. I can’t work with her and I’ve had no luck finding another one by myself. I need a new tutor.” 

There were a few long seconds of quiet, and Nico could tell that Nozomi was thinking. In that time, she stared hatefully at the dinky electronic keyboard in front of her that she had bought for herself for just $50, splaying her fingers petulantly on the plastic keys. Her attempts at teaching herself the instrument from YouTube videos had not exactly proven successful, half because it was so complicated and half because she had simply gotten bored. 

She could, at least, partially understand bass clef now by finding C on the staff and counting up or down. As a side note, the idea of there being completely different notations depending on the octave of a note offended her immensely. Who came up with that, anyway?

Nozomi hummed tonelessly. “Oh Nicocchi,” she sang, “you really need to learn how to watch your temper. Fighting with everyone who’s trying to help you won’t get you anywhere, you know.”

Nico bristled. “Hey, first of all, you have no idea how rude she was. And second of all, Nico never fights! She only brings smiles and joy to everyone around her!”

“Of course.” Nozomi chuckled amiably. “But, hm… this  _ is _ a problem. You do know that the producer specifically chose this trainer, right?”

Nico groaned again. “Are you serious? Why?” She chewed on her lower lip, weighing her options. This was her first starring role; she didn’t have nearly enough heft to argue with her employer. But there was also absolutely no way she was going to go crawling back for lessons with someone so infuriating. “I really can’t do it, Nozomi. Actually, I don’t think she’ll even let me back into her apartment. I kinda… stormed out on her.” 

“Nicocchi!” tutted the other girl reproachfully, though Nico could tell she wasn’t too surprised or bothered by the revelation. “Hm…”

“Come on, Nozomi,” the actress pleaded. “If I go back there, she’ll call the cops on me or something. No wait, she’ll probably just kill me. I’m too young to die!”

Nico could practically hear the eyebrow raise through the phone. “That bad, huh?” The sound of pages flipping reached her ears and she allowed herself to be just a little hopeful. “We-e-ll, I suppose I could do some searching for a suitable replacement. But we still have to tell the producer.”

Nico closed her eyes in relief. She had known that Nozomi would come around, but she hadn’t expected it to go so easily. “Can you tell her? Like, as my agent? But try to make it sound like the trainer’s fault so I don’t get in trouble.”

“You’re really pushing your luck, Nicocchi.”

She flopped back onto her couch, sinking into the cushions as she stared up at the ceiling of her tiny living room. It was more a living  _ space _ than anything, with the kitchen (comprised of little more than a burner, an oven, a sink, and a small fridge) built into one corner. “I just think it’d sound a lot better coming from you,” she wheedled. “More, I don’t know, professional? Pretty please?” She knew she was really laying it on thick, but in truth Nozomi would probably negotiate a lot better than she ever could. 

She threw a fist into the air in celebration when Nozomi finally agreed after a theatrical show of mulling it over. She knew she could always count on her best friend when she needed it most. 

“Thank you so much. I love ya!” She made to hang up, but Nozomi stopped her. 

“Now, Nicocchi,” she began, and Nico could tell she was about to get a lecture. She got more comfortable in her seat. “I’m helping you with this one but you need to start shaping up. You’re memorizing your lines and everything, I hope?”

“Duh. I’m not an amateur.” She glanced idly at her fingernails, wondering if she had the time to paint them sometime. “And we’re good for the screen test next week, too. Seriously, it’s just the piano thing, okay? Nico just needs a genius teacher, preferably one that’s  _ nice _ as well as hot, to coax out the latent piano prodigy she always knew she was and then she’ll be all set.”

“Well, we’ll see what we can do. I’ll have a talk with Kousaka and figure something out.” Nico heard the scritching of notes being made and grinned.

“Thanks again, Nozomi,” she said again, standing up and stretching. She began walking to her room, intent on finishing up the conversation and maybe taking a nap. “Like, seriously, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

She was about to say more, just to cement the whole thing, when suddenly, the doorbell rang.

The two-tone bell was loud, startling Nico and making her jump. She turned and frowned, mystified. She hadn’t been expecting anyone. Still cradling her phone, she strode over and undid the latch.

Nozomi had heard the doorbell too. “Ooh, Nicocchi, got a visitor? Should I hang up?”

Nico didn’t deign to reply and instead just pulled open the door. Standing outside of it was a deliveryman, a brown, hefty looking manila envelope in his hands. He smiled a friendly smile at the sight of her.

“Package for a Yazawa Nico?” She nodded and he whipped out a pen, clicking it with a practiced movement. “I’ll need you to sign here.”

Positively befuddled, she signed her name with a flourish and took the package. It was heavier than she expected, and from the feel of it contained multiple thin books. Maybe magazines? 

The delivery man stowed his pen away and touched the brim of his cap. “Thanks! Have a great day.” 

“What was it?” Nozomi asked, obviously curious. Nico, forgetting that the other girl couldn't see her, shrugged and flipped the envelope over.

“Just some mail…” She froze as her eyes landed on the sender's name. “Uh.”

“Uh?”

She was unable to respond for a full thirty seconds, while Nozomi continued to chirp in her ear. Finally, she managed to gather herself enough to stammer out, “Hey, uh, I’ll call you back later, okay?” She didn’t even listen for a reply before promptly tapping the end button and putting her phone away, then continued staring at the label.

The name of the sender was none other than Maki Nishikino.

Nico glared suspiciously at the package, as if at any moment a poisonous snake might come wriggling out of it. She couldn’t think of a single reason why the redhead would be sending her anything, except maybe to kill her. Maybe it’d be better to burn it entirely - wait, but what if it was an explosive? She sat on the couch and contemplated what the best course of action was. 

She considered several different options, including throwing the whole envelope out the balcony or letting it sit on the coffee table forever. In the end, though, curiosity won out. Gingerly, she reached for the opening flap, images of death by anthrax or poisonous acid clouding her mind as she did, and carefully flipped it open. What was waiting for her was not any sort of dangerous substance or feral vermin - she seemed to have been sent three flat, thin books. 

Now that Nico knew she wasn’t in any immediate peril, she relaxed her tense shoulders and grabbed the whole thing, pulling the books free of the envelope. A small note that was stuck to the first book fluttered to the floor. Nico scanned the titles before bending down to pick it up.

_ Piano for Beginners. The Virtuoso Pianist. 20 Piano Sonatas. _ They were all piano practice books, and boring looking ones, at that. Puzzled, she took up the note and scanned it, hoping for an explanation.

It was handwritten, in long, sloping letters that reminded her of a doctor’s handwriting:

_ Classes will be Mon.-Thurs. for 2 hours each, starting next week. Always bring these books with you. You are expected to practice in your free time. Read the intro to Piano for Beginners by next class. Maki Nishikino. _

That was all it said.

Nico squinted at the note, holding it up to the light, wondering if there was some secret message hidden in it. She was pretty sure that when she had left the penthouse, she had been clear she wouldn’t be going back ever again. So what was Maki doing, pretending that they hadn’t immediately discovered themselves to be the most incompatible combination in existence?

No, this  _ had _ to be some sort of trap, or joke, or something. Maki was probably setting her up to embarrass herself. If she showed up to the penthouse, the pianist would pretend she was a stalker, call the cops, and get her arrested. Obviously, the girl was trying to ruin her career. Well, Nico wasn’t dumb. There was no way she was falling for this one. It was laughable, trying to trick super genius actress Nico Yazawa. She felt bad, really, for Maki. It wasn’t her fault she was up against the smartest person in the world.

She unlocked her phone and hit redial. Her agent picked up on the second ring.

“Hey, Nozomi?” she found herself saying. “Hold off on finding a new piano teacher for a bit…”

 

**iii.**

That was how she found herself once again lingering at the front of a penthouse door, trying to convince herself to ring the bell. She was still absolutely certain that she was walking into an ambush - in fact, every muscle in her body was tensed, ready to break into a run at any moment. But, for reasons she couldn’t properly articulate herself, she had wound up here willingly anyway.

The truth is, she felt like Maki was challenging her, daring her to show up. She  _ wanted _ Nico to cancel, and Nico just wasn't going to give her the satisfaction. If they were going to play chicken, well, Nico had plenty of practice dealing with people she didn't like. She doubted Maki had the same kind of self-restraint or patience. 

So she rang the doorbell, jabbing her finger against the flat, rectangular button hard and holding it down, drawing it out. The door popped open practically immediately, and she was face to face with those violet eyes and shockingly red hair once more.

“Yazawa,” Maki deadpanned, as a greeting.

Rude. Nico counted to 10 really fast in her head, then counted again (a handy trick she had picked up from Nozomi after losing her temper one too many times), then arranged her features into the biggest smile she could manage. 

“ _ So _ nice to see you again, Maki!” she gushed, making her voice as sickeningly sweet as possible. “How are you?” The piano teacher simply grunted, then opened the door wider to begrudgingly let Nico enter. 

Nico stepped in, making no effort to hurry as she took off her shoes and lined them up neatly at the entrance. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Maki fidgeting impatiently. When she finally did make it over to the piano, she noticed that the redhead had, as opposed to before, set up a separate chair next to the bench. She made a point of dropping the three piano books with a flop onto the chair, then sat on the bench like she did last week. When she turned her head, she noticed that Maki was still standing in the middle of the living room, as if reluctant to get any closer.

She pouted. “Well, Maki? Are we gonna start? Don’t keep poor Nico waiting!” She hummed to herself and used a finger to sound out the first few notes of “Mary Had A Little Lamb.” 

“Don’t do that.” Before Nico could react, Maki had crossed the rest of the way, and her hand landed on top of Nico’s, pulling it away from the keys. She stared Nico straight in the eye as the continued, “If you’re going to do this, then do it seriously. You don’t know anything about touching a piano.”

Startled, Nico yanked her hand away from the pianist’s grasp. “Then hurry up and teach me!” she retorted irritably. Her cheeks, she could feel, were inexplicably flushed. 

Maki scooped up the piano books and sat in the chair beside her. “Let’s establish some ground rules.” She flipped open  _ Piano For Beginners _ and placed it on the stand. “First, forget that nonsense about being ‘convincing.’ You’re here to learn how to play piano, not how to pretend to play piano.”

“Hey, who says I can’t do both?”

Maki ignored her and plunged on. “Second, practice. Every day. If you don’t have a piano, I’m sure your company can afford to book practice rooms.  _ Third _ ,” she raised her voice, glaring at Nico to cut her off before she could speak, “Do what I tell you to do. If you’re going to take lessons from me, then don’t skimp out on what I assign you.” 

Nico rolled her eyes and pouted. “Maki’s so mean! Is poor Nico gonna make it through these torture classes?” She was pleased to see the other girl close her eyes and take a deep breath, as if trying desperately to stop herself from screaming. 

Finally, Maki hissed through gritted teeth, “You’re free to find someone else. I don’t care.” Her eyes narrowed as she continued, “But you’re going to have to tell your director to cancel the contract yourself.”

Nico stiffened, her smirk sliding off her face. “Contract?” she echoed suspiciously. She had no idea what Maki was referring to. The redhead, for her part, simply nodded as she twined a strand of hair around one finger.

“Why do you think I even agreed to teach you? We already signed the papers and I got paid for your lessons up front. It’ll be a real pain to back out now.”

This was news to Nico, and she bristled at the thought of all these decisions being made without her permission. She supposed it wasn’t exactly uncommon for training arrangements to be decided without consulting the actress in question, but still, someone should have told her after. Privately, she wondered if Nozomi had had a hand in all of this and resolved to get to the bottom of it later. 

“So I guess we're stuck with each other,” she pronounced finally, after coming up with nothing else to say. 

“I guess.”

“Fine then.”

“Fine.”

There were a few long, uncomfortable seconds where both of them just glared at each other. Nico wanted nothing more than to leave, make a grand, sweeping exit, but she was aware that there were deadlines fast approaching and she wasn’t a stranger to working with people that she didn’t like - plus, leaving now would mean losing.

Still, she wasn’t quite sure how to continue now. She opened her mouth and closed it, and was about to try touching the piano again because at least that had gotten  _ some _ reaction, when Maki spoke again.

“So, let’s start,” she said abruptly, surprising Nico. “Put your right thumb on Middle C.” Her tone was brusque and commanding. Nico bit back a sharp retort and obediently lifted her hand. A clear, ringing note played out when she pressed the key. 

Maki scooted closer now, coming almost halfway out of her chair to observe. Nico felt oddly hyper-conscious of her presence, a low warmth hovering at her shoulder. “Now, do you know where G is? Put your pinky there.” Nico did so, curving her fingers naturally to accomodate the space between the keys. “And if you put your middle finger on E, you have a C major chord.” 

Nico pressed the three keys together simultaneously, and Maki did the same on an octave higher. It was a pretty, soft sound, and Nico stole a furtive glance at the redhead next to her as the notes faded away. She looked like she was thinking over how to proceed, and in that moment Nico had the thought that Maki was much more tolerable when she was in teacher mode.

She shook the thought away in disgust seconds later when Maki said wryly, “Looks like you can listen to people after all.” 

“Um, excuse me?” the actress shot back. “Nico is a  _ great _ listener.”

Despite the occasional barbed exchange, however, the lesson began to smooth itself out, and soon Nico was playing a simple C scale. She hated to admit it, but Maki’s hand was elegant against the white and black keys, her fingers effortlessly dancing on the piano and making it sing. She did her best to emulate the movements, although she couldn’t avoid getting reprimanded by her sharp-tongued tutor.

“Pay attention. Fingering matters, you can’t just use any finger you like.” 

“That’s not what your mom said last night.”

“Pardon?” 

And on it went. Nico actually found herself enjoying trying to figure out how best to move her fingers and match them with the little black notes on the paper, even with her incredibly ill-mannered teacher. Maki, as mean as she was, clearly knew her stuff. By the last ten minutes, Nico could play the simple melody on the first lesson for  _ Piano For Beginners _ , and Maki even had her bring her left hand into play a little as well, although that was much harder to get used to. 

Maki’s eyes flicked to the clock as Nico once again picked through the few chords enscribed in the beginner’s book and the actress paused expectantly. The redhead gave a stiff nod.

“Time’s up for today. We got further than expected, which is good.” She still spoke in those curt, short sentences, as if trying as hard as she could to limit the amount of interaction she had with her student. 

Nico grinned smugly. She was too elated by her progress to care that Nishikino was being so unfriendly. “Maki can say it, it’s okay! Nico’s a born natural, right?” she crowed. “Watch out, or she’ll pass you in no time!”

The scowl on the pianist’s face was so pronounced it could’ve turned a lesser being to stone. “Don’t be so full of yourself. This is just the beginning.”

Nico pulled a face as she began gathering her books. “Geez, would it kill you to take that stick out of your ass?”

Maki stood up suddenly from her chair, making Nico flinch with surprise. “Hey! Just joking.” Maki bent closer, until Nico could almost feel the air from her breathing. She noted in the back of her mind that the pianist smelled faintly of strawberries. 

“Get up.” Nico decided for once that it would be better not to argue, and she quickly vacated her seat. She watched carefully as Maki sat down in her place and lifted her hands over the piano’s keys. The pianist took a deep breath and closed her eyes, then brought her fingers down. 

The song started out quietly, like rippling water, the barest tinkling of notes that somehow Nico could still hear perfectly clearly. Gradually, it swelled, building into an ocean of sound. Nico had never been one for instrumental music, but then again, she had never had the opportunity to listen to a piece while standing right next to the person playing. Maki’s hands and arms were a blur, and her body seemed to move  _ with _ the melody, guiding and being guided as if she was almost dancing to it. It was as captivating as any of the greatest scenes in Nico’s favorite movies, and Nico had seen plenty, had studied them fervently to capture every small curl of a finger or slight quirk of an eyebrow. 

She did the same now, drinking in the sight of the girl playing piano before her, bathed in the sun’s rays like she was under a spotlight. In that minute, she could forget her annoyance and frustration, and simply listen to the beautiful performance.

Too soon, the song came to an end. The last, melancholy note rang out, and the living room settled into silence. Maki’s eyelids fluttered open and she lifted her hands off the instrument, turning her head to look up at Nico.

“Do you know what song that was?” she asked. Nico, unable to speak, simply shook her head. “It’s the last piece you have to learn for your movie. Not particularly difficult, but it’s still going to take a lot of time.”

Nico blinked. “Whoa, you memorized it already?”

The pianist shrugged, although she brought her hand up in a self-conscious manner to twirl at her hair again. “I asked for the sheet music from the director. Anyway,” she continued, changing the subject, “what I meant was, we have a long way to go.” Nico found herself oddly fixated on the word “ _ we _ .” 

“Yeah, well,” the actress pouted. “Maybe if you were a  _ little _ nicer to me, I’d do better. Do you treat all your students like this?” She sighed dramatically. “It’s a shame, Maki has such a cute face, too… Not as cute as Nico’s though, of course.”

A tinge of red to match her hair appeared in Maki’s cheeks, which Nico observed with some satisfaction. So there  _ was _ a way to get under her skin. 

“T-Time’s up,” the taller girl said, not quite as smoothly as usual. “I’ve got other students. Get out.”

Nico was already stowing away her books. They crossed the living room together, Maki tailing her as if the redhead was afraid she’d steal something on the way out. Nico took less time to put on her shoes than she had taking them off, sensing that freedom was finally at hand. 

Maki leaned against the hallway wall as Nico grasped the door. “Tomorrow. Same time. Practice.” Nico rolled her eyes at the imperative tone and nodded, and was about to make another snide comment when Maki added so softly that she could barely hear it, “Nice job today.” 

Nico whipped her head up, but Maki was already averting her eyes, turning away. The actress wondered if she had imagined the words; surely it wasn’t possible that Maki had actually  _ praised _ her? 

She thought briefly about asking the pianist to repeat herself. In the end, though, she opted instead for the one tactic that never failed her - the biggest, brightest smile she could muster. “See you tomorrow, Maki.”

And was it just her imagination, or was there also a ghost of a smile playing around those curved lips as they parted in answer?

“See you tomorrow. Yazawa.”


	2. Minuet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Minuet: a social dance of French origin, characterized by its very small steps; also, the musical style that accompanies the dance.

**i.**

Maki wasn’t used to teaching adults.

Her first student had been a relative’s fidgety, 4-year-old daughter. Maki had found her banging around on the grand piano during the annual family Christmas party, and tasked with babysitting, had sat her down on the bench properly and taught her to play “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.” Her aunt had cooed and simpered at the feat and ended up asking if the redhead would be kind enough to teach the girl to be a “a real musician like you, Maki dear!” With her parents’ meaningful and vaguely threatening glances, she had accepted reluctantly. 

Since then, she had somehow made a name for herself in the upper echelons of rich parents who had nothing better to do than to make their offspring learn piano. She had been officially teaching for 4 years now, starting from when she turned 19, although she had been part-time for awhile until she finally graduated from university. To her surprise, Maki had found herself quite adept at getting children anywhere from the age of 4 to 16 to pay attention to the finer details of piano playing and hone their technique. The two or three high school students she had under her tutelage had come in with some prior knowledge, and with her help were sure to surpass her one day. She actually enjoyed coming up with ways to get the kids interested, and their simple concerns and worries were a relief from her everyday stress - like, for example, the pressure from her parents to “get a real job” or marry somebody with one.  

Maki was doing quite well for herself though, thanks. Her own piano teacher had made her living purely off of teaching piano and the odd performance; why couldn’t she do the same? With that in mind, she welcomed every new student and took pride in her pupils’ accomplishments.

But again, all of her students up to this point had been children.

And though Nico Yazawa might  _ act  _ like a child and might be the same height as one, she most assuredly was  _ not _ one. Maki realized this as soon as she had appeared before her door that first time, wearing a skirt that was  _ far _ too short. 

Of course, there were plenty of other things that bothered the pianist. For starters, her motivation for learning. Most of her kids were being forced to take lessons, and one or two even actively chose to pick piano up. In both cases, Maki could work on nurturing a gradual love for music and feel like she was making a real change in, if not the world, then at least someone’s life. But Yazawa was doing it for, what, her job? She expected to learn the finer nuances of a complicated instrument in just 12 weeks? Would she even touch one again after filming was over? The idea that she wouldn’t vexed Maki to no end. It was the exact kind of irreverent flippancy that she hated.

Then there was the way she always talked back. Maki had had rebellious students before, but this was something entirely different. It felt like at every turn, Yazawa was goading her or making some insipid, unnecessary comment. Maki had no idea why she couldn’t just sit still and listen (qualities that make a good pianist). She refused to believe that the actress could actually be two years older than her. And the things she said! Maki could handle annoying (most of the time), and she could pardon laziness. She could even tolerate the egotistical airs Yazawa often put on. What she  _ couldn’t _ stand were the remarks that were obviously specifically designed to get under her skin. 

“Oh, Maki,” she would say, fluttering her eyelashes so theatrically that Maki would be tempted to ask whether something was stuck in her eye, “you look  _ so _ nice today. Did you dress up for Nico? Sorry~ Nico’s married to the stage!” Just the other day she had tried to lecture the girl on proper fingering technique and Yazawa had nearly collapsed with laughter, saying, “I guess playing piano is the only fingering action you get, huh?” What was that even supposed to mean? She had no idea, and she also didn’t know exactly  _ why _ these comments practically made her itch with a mysterious mix of irritation and embarrassment. Maki had always regarded her delicate complexion as a natural-born gift, but she found herself cursing it on a near-daily basis now that she realized she couldn’t stop herself from flushing. She knew that Yazawa was doing it on purpose too, by the flash of triumph in her stupidly huge eyes that were so brown they were almost red. 

Two weeks and eight lessons had already passed in this fashion, and Maki wasn’t sure she could take much more of it. The frequent, two-hour sessions were difficult to plan for, especially for such a capricious pupil. On one hand, Yazawa lacked the malleability of a younger student, adjusting to shifting hand positions and octave changes less quickly than she would have liked. On the other, she made oddly insightful leaps of logic at times, seeing the connections in the chords and rhythms where a child might not have appreciated them. She had studied a little about brain development and age in university, when she was still on the pre-med fast track, but it was quite another thing to experience it firsthand. She would be fascinated, if her object of study wasn’t so infuriating.

Due to the time constraints they were under, Maki had reluctantly resolved to start the process of helping the actress memorize the first song from her movie. She wouldn’t normally have a student do anything this complicated so soon, but the circumstances were decidedly  _ not _ normal. And she had to admit that Nico Yazawa did, at least, work pretty hard when she wanted to. Being able to see her progress day by day was oddly gratifying, despite all the frustrations the arrangement came with. Her other students only had classes once or twice a week. 

The bottom line was, Nico Yazawa was irritating. She was wholly unsuited to the piano as an instrument, yet she was full of herself and lacked even the slightest modicum of self-awareness.  _ However _ , trying to plan around her strict scheduling and the novelty of instructing a full-grown adult (albeit a tiny one) was an interesting challenge within itself and not wholly unpleasant, she supposed. And against all odds, Yazawa took to the task with surprising seriousness - at least, in the context of her job. So Maki did make the right choice when she called up Honoka and, instead of voiding the contract as she intended, impulsively asked for the girl’s address and requested that the number of lessons each week be increased. 

She frowned when she remembered what she did. She still wasn’t entirely sure what had come over her. Perhaps it was just that, if Honoka’s movie turned out to be a flop, she didn’t want to live with the knowledge that she had contributed to its failure. Or maybe she had been seeking a change in pace.

Certainly, the small pang of guilt she had felt seeing Nico’s disappointed but determined expression as she disappeared behind the elevator doors all those weeks ago had had no influence on her decision at all. 

“Sensei?” She blinked as a young voice called out to her, and she returned instantly from her distant thoughts. The student she was teaching now, a precocious ten-year-old, had finished playing and was looking at her curiously. 

She smiled automatically at him, inwardly chastising herself for spacing out. “That was good. Be careful of the trills on measure 32, there’s no need to rush them.” She pointed it out on the sheet music, then played it back for him with her right hand on the lower octave. He nodded and, eyebrows furrowed with concentration, began playing the part again. 

He was about halfway through it when the doorbell rang suddenly, startling him and causing his fingers to falter. A discordant squeak sounded from the piano and he stopped, glancing at her guiltily. 

She smiled again at him, this time reassuringly, while wondering who in the world would be calling in on a Saturday morning. “I’ll be right back,” she said to her student. “Keep playing.” 

The sounds of the piano followed her to the door as she crossed the living room and peered at the front door camera display. She was shocked, and yet somehow not shocked at all, to see Nico standing in the hall, fussing absentmindedly at her hair. 

She contemplated, for a moment, simply returning to the living room and continuing the lesson. Whatever reason Yazawa was here for, it couldn’t be good. But predictably, the girl rang the bell more insistently when no answer came, and with her student behind her pausing his playing yet again, she realized that the sooner she took care of the distraction, the better. She opened the door just slightly and stuck her face in the crack.

“What the hell are you doing here, Yazawa?” she hissed. Not exactly the most polite greeting she ever gave, but who could blame her?

Yazawa, evidently. The actress looked scandalized. “Hello to you too,” she quipped. “Are you busy, Maki?” 

“Yes.” A few beats of silence passed, with the girl before her staring at her expectantly, and she expanded reluctantly. “I have a student.”

“On a Saturday?” Yazawa whistled low, in mocking admiration. “No rest for the wicked, huh?”

“Some of us have real jobs.” The actress’ face darkened at the jab, to Maki’s satisfaction. She had found early on that the girl always had an appropriate (or rather, inappropriate) comeback to most things, but struggled to keep her cool when the legitimacy of acting as a profession was called into question. She liked to see Yazawa’s usual, evasively playful demeanor slip; it made her seem less fake, more like a real person. 

Yazawa was already smoothing over her expression, fixing that infuriating smile to her lips again. “Well, let me in! I’ll just wait until you’re done. I wanted to see how you act with other students, anyway. Like, are you always that mean, or is Nico just special?” 

“Absolutely not.” Maki moved to close the door, but Nico nudged a foot into the frame, stopping her. They each struggled against the painted wood, but from how she was standing, Nico had the upper hand and could at least hold her position indefinitely.

Maki had two options. She could continue to stand at the door, engaged in this increasingly childish battle and neglecting her student, who would absolutely go back and report this to his parents. Or, she could give in and allow Nico Yazawa into her home and just pray that she didn’t interrupt any more than she already had.

About thirty seconds later, the actress was daintily slipping off her shoes at the entrance and thanking Maki politely as if she hadn’t just forced her way in. Maki hurried over back to the piano and apologized to her student, glancing up at the clock to note that they only had about 12 minutes left of the lesson. 12 minutes. She could do this.

The 10 year old looked apprehensively at Yazawa, who at least had the decency to sit further away on one of the sofas and was watching the two talk to each other. “Is this your friend, Sensei?” 

“No,” she said automatically.

“Yes,” Nico said at the same time. 

They frowned at each other, and Maki narrowed her eyes threateningly. “This is… another student,” she explained finally, after a touch of hesitation. “She’s just going to watch, so let’s just practice like normal, okay?” 

Thankfully, the boy didn’t press further. Surprisingly, Yazawa remained quiet, too, though Maki could feel her gaze boring into her back as she returned to the lesson. Her student played through the relatively short piece from the beginning to the end. They had already been working on this piece for about a month, so there wasn’t much to do besides tighten up a few corners. Maki managed, with some difficulty, to concentrate solely on her duties as a teacher, listening carefully to the piece and mentally noting which parts still needed work. 

The last ten minutes passed without incident and before she even knew it, she was rising to escort her student back across the living room. Nico stood as well, and she hovered over Maki’s shoulder distractingly as the redhead bid farewell to the boy.

“Don’t forget to practice. You did well today, we’ll be able to move on to a new song soon.” The boy grinned proudly and gave a short bow before shuffling out of the apartment, books in tow. 

Maki waited until he had gone and the door had closed before finally spinning around to face Yazawa. 

“Happy now?”

Nico had on that fake-looking smile she wore like a second skin. “Yes!” she purred, obviously pleased with herself. The features of her face softened and grew more serious as she continued, “You’re good with kids. Surprisingly.” 

Maki had been prepared for some sort of smart-aleck comment, and the unexpected compliment threw her for a moment. She wasn’t sure how to respond, and she could feel the color quickly rising to her cheeks. This didn’t escape the actress’ notice, and at her widening smirk, Maki reigned herself back in. 

“I’ve got thirty minutes before my next student. What do you want?”

Yazawa hummed, displeased. “Wow, Maki, you need to relax.” Her eyes sparkled mischievously, and the pianist knew instantly that she was up to no good. “Which is exactly why I came over!” With Maki looking on, she flounced over to the sofa and collected the totebag she had brought, which she presented with a flourish. “This is for you!”

Maki recoiled in suspicion, keeping her hands at her sides at first. The other girl, however, pressed the bag insistently against her until she took it with reluctance, parting the straps slightly to peer inside. Nestled comfortably in the fabric were a dozen or so DVD cases. 

Maki raised her head, baffled. “Movies? Why?”

Nico beamed, puffing out her chest. She looked even more smug than usual, her lips curling up deviously as she explained herself. “Maki’s always going on about how dumb acting is, right? That’s like, an insult to the entire industry, seriously. But I was thinking about it and realized maybe Maki just hasn’t watched any good movies, so she doesn’t know anything about them?”

Maki frowned. She didn’t like the implication that Nico thought she was ignorant, especially when the actress wasn’t able to tell the difference between Handel and Debussy, and thought Tchaichovsky was a type of salad. Before she could interject, though, Nico plunged on. “So I took the time out of my busy schedule to personally choose  _ the best _ films in the world! I made a list of the order you should watch them in, too, so finish at least 3 by Monday, okay?” She stared at the redhead, her eyes sparkling with expectation, as if she fully believed that Maki would actually say yes to the ridiculous proposal. 

“ _ No _ ,” she said, firmly. The smile on Yazawa’s face faltered. “I don’t have time. And I’m not interested.”

She braced herself for protest, already half-devising a counter-argument in her mind, but when Yazawa remained uncharacteristically silent, she looked closer. She was probably imagining things, but there seemed to be a note of genuine hurt in the actress’ eyes. Then again, Maki had never been particularly good at reading people, and there was no way that the girl would be seriously upset at such a reasonable refusal.

“At least try it,” muttered Yazawa, the volume of her voice dropping. Her words came out more like a plea than a command, and Maki hesitated. She shifted uneasily, suddenly becoming all too aware of the stillness of the living room. She didn’t like the way the actress was looking at her now, her eyes wide and glinting with something that couldn’t possibly be tears. 

“Absolutely not,” she tried again, hardening her voice with resolve, and was horrified to see a trembling at Nico’s lower lip. The other girl took a sharp breath, as if trying to choke back a sob, and stepped back a little, casting her gaze down to the floor. 

Maki felt anxiety rising in her throat. She darted a glance at the clock, eyeing the time apprehensively. Her next student had a propensity for coming in early, which she usually appreciated as it indicated a refreshing diligence all too uncommon in kids these days. The last thing she wanted, though, was for someone to walk in while this minor, D-list celebrity was crying in the middle of her living room. 

“S-Stop,” she said nervously. “I know you’re faking it.” Her command went unheeded, and Nico now looked like she was about to collapse into tears. A trickle of doubt entered her heart. The actress couldn’t possibly be for real, could she?

The girl brought her hands to her face, her whole body trembling. Her breathing came in audible, heaving gasps that made Maki’s blood run hot with guilt and embarrassment. She felt her own nose prickling painfully, and she had the distinct impression that she was being trapped, held captive by those delicate, shaking shoulders. That feeling only increased in intensity when, right on cue, the doorbell rang.

“Okay, fine!” she snapped in panic. “I’ll watch your movies okay? Please stop!”

Yazawa sighed heavily into her fingers. She looked up at Maki, her lashes wet and her eyes bright and watery. Her cheeks were flushed, and there was a look of faltering vulnerability in the way her mouth worried at her lower lip. “You really mean it?”

A soft, meek rap sounded upon the door from the other side. Maki couldn’t keep her student waiting much longer. She nodded rapidly, deciding that agreeing would be the quickest way to stop the situation from spiraling further out of control. “Yes, alright? I will. Please just - just get yourself cleaned up!”

Nico wiped slowly at her eyes while Maki looked on, practically vibrating with anxiety and impatience. She felt bad for hurrying someone who had just been crying, but a lot of things were happening all at the same time right now so she could hardly be blamed for being slightly stressed out. 

The actress, still sniffling, began gathering her things. Maki, still clutching the tote bag full of DVDs absentmindedly, stood back to let her slip on her shoes. Nico turned around and looked up at her with those big, begging eyes once more.

“You promise, right?”

“Yes. Yes, I promise, now please, my next lesson…” She was about to say more when she noticed a change in the other girl’s expression. She frowned and looked closer at Nico, who suddenly didn’t look like she had been crying at all.

The look of pain and sadness had disappeared from the shorter girl’s features. Maki blinked twice, wondering if she was seeing things, but then a broad, sly grin spread over Nico’s face, and in that moment, the pianist knew she had been tricked.   
“Great to hear!” The actress’ voice was chipper, a far cry from the despair and misery it contained only seconds ago.   
The redhead spluttered in disbelief. “You - I -”   
Nico winked roguishly. “Don’t underestimate actors,” she said, triumph sneaking into her voice. Maki couldn’t believe that she had been so easily fooled, even for a moment. Her chest swelled in anger and she was about to tear into the actress when the doorbell rang yet again, reminding her that she didn’t have time to think about it right now.

She deflated. “Ugh. Just leave already.” She pulled open the door, where her other student was waiting. The bewildered teenaged girl stood at the entrance, eyeing the two women nervously; Maki gave her a short nod, but Nico hardly glanced at her. The actress had the nerve to blow a kiss at Maki as she waltzed out, obviously pleased with herself.

“See ya, Maki!” She turned again after taking two or three steps down the lobby toward the elevator, craning her neck over her shoulder to add, “Don’t forget! Three by Monday!”

Maki nearly groaned but, seeing her student’s concerned look, caught herself at the last minute. She took a deep breath and waved the girl in, smoothing her face into the practiced, collected teacher look she knew she wore well.

She couldn’t help, however, staying at the door for a moment longer and watching the elevator doors slide open. She could feel a wry smile pulling at the corners of her mouth unbidden as she receded back into her apartment, despite everything.   
It had been a long time since she had been so thoroughly deceived. 

 

**ii.**

“What’s up, Maki?” 

The pianist squinted grumpily into the sunlight. She strained to make out Rin Hoshizora’s face, backlit by the afternoon sun. Around them, the cafe bustled with the carefree chatter of its customers, and the pleasant aroma of roasting coffee pervaded throughout the little shop. 

“Nothing,” she replied, lifting her cup to her lips. “I was just up a little late last night.”

Hanayo Koizumi smiled at her in concern from the other side of the booth as she cut into the little tiramisu cake that she had before her. Rin slyly tried to steal a piece while she wasn't looking, and Maki couldn’t help but chuckle at their antics.

They often came to this cafe, which was tucked into a corner several blocks away from Maki’s apartment. The other two lived several stops away, but they always insisted on places closer to where Maki lived. Maki, not wanting to feel like a burden, eventually compromised with them and they alternated between this cafe and a different one located in Rin and Hanayo’s neighborhood.

“Oh! What were you doing?” Rin’s typical boundless curiosity radiated from her expression, looking almost brighter than the sun itself. “Oh! Was it a date?”

Nico’s face flashed inexplicably and irritatingly in her mind for a fraction of a second. “No? Why would you even think that?” She was used to Rin’s flights of fancy by now, but they still made absolutely no sense to her. “I was… watching a movie.” 

“That sounds nice.” It was Hanayo who spoke now. Maki could tell by the way she moved her arm that she had taken Rin’s hand below the table, as if to calm her down. Rin’s wriggling stilled a little, though her eyes were still shining with unbridled energy. 

“How are you two?” Maki asked, more to change the subject than anything. 

Rin leapt in eagerly. “Great! Kayochin and I just had our 4th year anniversary like last week so we took a trip to Osaka! And the kids at my new elementary school are a-meow-zing. They’re so good and so smart, and…” Maki and Hanayo exchanged knowing glances as the girl took off.

The pianist listened amusedly as Rin rattled off two weeks’ worth of happenings in rapid succession, a little envious of how excited she seemed about everything. Hanayo, too, looked slightly exasperated, but mostly proud and contented. The two felt like an old couple already, which Maki supposed wasn’t too far off the mark. They had known each other forever, and now that they were living together and supporting one another - Rin was a teacher and Hanayo had some management position at a small company - they were hardly ever apart. 

“But how about you, Maki?” Hanayo cut in again. “How’s teaching been?”

Maki hesitated before answering. “It’s… good,” she said slowly. “I suppose. I’ve actually taken on something kind of annoying recently, so that’s been taking up a lot of time.” She wasn't often in the habit of discussing her lessons with anyone, but Rin and Hanayo were her exceptions. They leaned in to listen as she explained the situation. Hanayo in particular looked especially interested.

“So she's an actress? What's her name?” the brunette asked when Maki was finished, her eyes bright with intrigue. Too late, the pianist remembered that the girl was an avid film buff who had probably watched every movie ever made in the last four years. Twice. 

Maki considered the question carefully, frowning to herself. She usually kept quiet about her students’ private information - a leftover instinct from her pre-med days - but after some reflection, she figured that the news would get out one way or another in the near future anyway. 

“Yazawa,” she finally answered. “ _ Nico _ Yazawa.” She uttered that childish, ridiculously adorable first name with a grimace; even saying it forced the speaker’s lips into a smile. 

Hanayo gasped loudly and leapt up, causing heads to turn. “Really?” she squealed, her voice cracking with excitement. Maki shushed her furiously, regretting her rash decision. Hanayo was normally soft-spoken, in direct contrast with her girlfriend, but she could get fired up about the oddest things sometimes. Rin, too, writhed about in her chair restlessly, spurred on by the energy of the girl next to her. 

Hanayo, suddenly coming to a realization that she was out in public, sat down abruptly. Chagrined by her outburst, her voice dropped to a whisper as she bent her head over the table, staring at Maki intensely. “You’re teaching _Nico_ _Yazawa_? Are you serious? Maki, that’s amazing!”

The redhead’s hand leapt to her hair without even noticing, and she twirled it with her fingers as she puzzled over Hanayo’s reaction. “Y-You know her?” She had suspected that her friend might recognize the name, but she was still surprised. “Is she really that famous?” Rin cocked her head too, waiting on Hanayo’s reply, so Maki could tell she hadn’t heard the name before. 

Hanayo flushed. “Well… Not really? She’s been in some minor roles. But she was pretty active in the theater scene around here two or so years ago. I’ve seen her acting before. She’s really talented!” 

Maki couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at Hanayo’s praise for the actress. Rin noticed, but misinterpreted the gesture wildly. She grinned happily as she stole another bite of cake from the girl next to her and commented, “Wow, that means Maki’s teaching a future movie star, huh?”

Hanayo gasped again in realization. “You’re right, Rin! This is her first leading role! If it’s a hit, she’ll be set for life!” She looked as ecstatic as if it had been her own accomplishment. She turned to Maki again with such enthusiasm that the redhead was starting to regret saying anything at all. “What’s she like? Is she as cool in person as she is on screen?”

“Cool?” Maki couldn’t believe her ears. In what universe would Nico Yazawa be regarded as  _ cool _ ? She set about immediately to dispel her friend’s mistaken impressions. “Hardly. She’s a real pain, actually. Full of herself. Inconsiderate. Careless.” She noticed that Hanayo wilted with every word and felt slightly guilty about dashing her hopes and dreams. “Anyway,” she finished quickly. “She’s not that great.” 

Hanayo seemed considerably disappointed, but Rin shot the redhead a quizzical look. The lighter-haired girl sucked noisily on her straw, draining half the iced tea in her glass in one go, then said nonchalantly, “You sound like you kinda get along with her though?”

Maki nearly choked on the bite of pastry she had just put in her mouth. She coughed once, twice, then swallowed the flaky bread entirely before it could suffocate her. “No way,” she finally croaked, grabbing her drink and taking a gulp while her friends looked on in concern. “Why would you even say that?”

Rin hummed pensively, then shrugged. “I don’t know, you sure like talking about her. Hanayo, can I have the rest of your cake?” Hanayo sighed and pushed over the plate, and like that, the conversation was over. Maki, though, remained confused, trying to figure out what she could have said about Nico that Rin could possibly misconstrue as positive. The cafe, which had been so pleasant just moments earlier, suddenly felt oppressively warm.

The pianist stood up and muttered something about the bathroom, excusing herself, and strode over to the other side of the shop, threading her way past the tables and chairs. The bathrooms themselves were single-room affairs, one for men and one for women, with a shared sink between the two opposing doors. In contrast to the modern-looking cafe, the area was outfitted with wood paneling and dimly lit. 

Maki caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and paused, smoothing out her hair. There was a tinge of red still in her cheeks, though she would be hard-pressed to explain why it was there in the first place. Away from the booth, she was now baffled by her bizarre reaction to the conversation and felt a little foolish. She certainly had no reason to get so flustered.

She twisted the faucets, letting the water run a little before catching it when her hands. She patted her cheeks with her wet fingers, mindful of her makeup, and sighed irritably, annoyed that she had let Nico get into her head so easily when she wasn’t even there. 

“Get yourself together, Maki,” she whispered under her breath. To her right there was the sound of a toilet flushing, and half a second later, the door to the women’s bathroom pulled open. The pianist mumbled an apology, realizing she was in the way, and shuffled sideways, prepared to head back to Rin and Hanayo. She was stopped in her tracks, however, when out of the corner of her eye she glimpsed an all-too familiar sight of tied up black hair and pouting lips. She lifted her gaze and came face-to-face with the exact object of all her troubles.

To be fair, Nico Yazawa looked just as startled as she herself was. The shorter girl’s mouth fell open in recognition, mirroring her own surprise. 

“Maki? What are you doing here?”

Maki started at the sound of her own name and stiffened. “Getting coffee, obviously,” she replied frostily, and crossed her arms. “What about you? Don’t you live on the other side of the city?”

Nico ignored the question and peered around her, back in the direction of the cafe’s main floor. “Alone? With friends? Does Maki even have friends?”

The pianist felt heat rise to her face. “Of course I do,” she stammered angrily, and before she could stop herself, added, “I’m here with them right now, in fact.” 

She knew she had made a mistake when Nico’s bright eyes widened in interest. The actress leaned in closer, looking up at her with a sly grin on her face. “You should introduce me,” she simpered. “It’s not every day you get to meet a superstar. I bet your friends would love me!”

Maki reeled backwards, nearly losing her footing. The idea of Yazawa potentially embarrassing her in front of Rin, Hanayo, and the entire cafe repulsed her intensely. “No!” she protested, but Nico was already pulling her along back into the public eye. She dug her heels in briefly, then eyed the nearby customers who were looking over at the commotion curiously and straightened up. Nico paid no attention to her complaints, looking around with enthusiasm. 

“Which table?”

And when Maki’s eyes strayed involuntarily to where her two friends were sitting, she accidentally locked gazes with Hanayo. The brunette took one look at the girl next to her and emitted a gasp so loud that Maki could hear it above the voices of the other patrons. 

Despite her best efforts to prevent it, Maki found herself crammed into the far end of the booth, with Nico sliding in next to her. Rin and Hanayo faced them from the opposite side, their faces reflecting awe and excitement. Hanayo especially looked like she was about to jump out of her seat at any given moment. Brief introductions went around, with Nico making sure to mention that she was a movie star several times.

“So you two and Maki are good friends?” Nico asked after they had all exchanged names, a teasing smile upon her lips. She sipped from her iced coffee, which she had originally gotten to-go. Maki grimaced as they nodded vigorously. 

“We’ve known Maki since forever-nya!” Rin blinked like a satisfied cat and turned to nuzzle Hanayo affectionately. “We all went to the same elementary school together!”

Nico was clearly pleased by this new tidbit, chewing on her straw with evident glee. Maki silently decided that their class tomorrow was going to involve  _ lots _ of repetitive and grueling drills.

Hanayo shifted nervously, her eyes casting from side to side. Maki knew she was shy and easily starstruck, and although Nico  _ definitely _ wasn’t the type worth fawning over, she was still glad that her friend could at least finally meet someone she admired. The brown-haired girl worked up the courage to blurt out suddenly, “Um! I’m a really big fan! Actually! You were amazing in  _ Two Blind Mice, One Mute Cat _ !”

Maki rolled her eyes, fully expecting a Nico to respond with her typical egotistical bragging. She turned to look at the girl, ready with a stinging comment that would be sure to silence her if she got too out of hand, but found that Nico did _ not _ look smug at all. In fact, she looked downright thunderstruck. 

“You watched that?” the actress asked in confusion. “We only performed it for like, a week…”

Hanayo blushed and inclined her head. “Yeah, I go to that theater a lot… I really like plays. That director is so good!”

“Right? Most people don’t get it, but his scripts actually have a lot of depth. He pays a lot of attention to his characters, and…”

Something interesting was happening. Maki furrowed her brow as she watched the scene unfold. Hanayo was being more talkative than Maki had seen her in awhile. She and Nico launched into a heated conversation about a few recent films that had just been screened at a local film festival, and Maki found herself making mystified eye contact with Rin, who looked just as left in the dust as she was.

“Hey Maki,” whispered the ginger-headed girl after awhile, cupping her hand to her mouth in a mock-confidential manner, “Nico doesn’t seem so bad, nya?”

The pianist saw the animated way Yazawa waved her hands around, too caught up in the discussion to notice the other two talking about her. It was kind of nice to see her so fired up, when she normally was so flippant about everything. Maki shook her head. No, this was  _ Nico _ they were talking about. She jerked her shoulders ambivalently in answer to Rin and reached out for her coffee, which had long gone cold.

“And it's so great to know you're finally starring in your own movie!” Hanayo was saying eagerly. Nico had mustered some of her usual confidence back and she puffed up her chest ridiculously at the brunette's praise. 

“Well yeah! I mean, it's about time! Nico was  _ born _ to act, after all.” 

Hanayo clasped her hands together joyfully. “I can’t wait to see it! Can you tell us what it’s about at all? Something piano-related, right?” Maki tuned in. She realized that she actually didn’t really have much of an idea of what the movie’s plot was either; Nico hadn’t mentioned it during their sessions, weirdly.

The actress scratched her head and was silent for a moment. Rin and Hanayo waited with bated breath, and Maki had to admit that she was a little curious as well, if only because she was partly involved in the film herself. 

“Do you wanna see?” she asked quietly, after a pause. When they all stared blankly back at her, she elaborated, “I have to visit the set sometime next week. Actually that’s why I was around in the first place.” Maki caught the look she gave her and narrowed her eyes. “Nozom- er, my agent said I should get Maki to come down so she has an idea of what we’re going for.”

Maki narrowed her eyes even as Hanayo’s widened excitedly. “Are you serious?” the brunette squeaked. Rin, easily influenced by her girlfriend, also sat up energetically. 

Nico smirked suddenly. “Only if Maki agrees though,” she added, and this time the pianist  _ knew _ she was intentionally forcing her hand. 

Maki gritted her teeth and looked across the table at her friends, who had turned to her expectantly. She didn’t want to go, didn’t want to be further tangled in Nico’s scheme more than she already was. But she knew full well that if she said no, Hanayo would be devastated. And she didn’t  _ really _ have a good reason to refuse. It would probably be better for their lessons if she went along, anyway. 

So, with the utmost reluctance, she finally let out a long sigh and grabbed her purse, where she always kept her pocket planner. She whipped out a pen and clicked it once, twice, three times.

“What day and what time?”

 

**iii.**

Besides Yazawa’s lessons, Maki didn’t usually have any students during daylight hours on the weekdays; with most of her pupils still in school, she typically didn’t have any come in until the afternoon, or early evening. So she was, regrettably, very available bright and early the next Friday morning, when she pulled up to the set location that Nico had designated. Hanayo and Rin arrived at roughly the same time in their own car and they met in the parking lot. Hanayo was nearly hopping from foot to foot with single-minded impatience. For once, she looked more energetic than her girlfriend, who looked as sleepy as Maki felt. 

“I’ve never seen a movie set in person before,” the brunette whispered, eyes wide in anticipation, as they walked across the lot. Maki regarded the familiar-looking building in front of them skeptically, but refrained from making any negative comments. The setting of the film was a high school, so the producers had rented out an school that was no longer being used.

Many people were already bustling across the first floor when they entered, although a harassed-looking assistant managed to spare some time and lead them over to where the cast and producers were. The group stood in a corner conversing but turned to look as the trio approached. Nico grinned and opened her mouth, but the director stepped forward first.

“Maki! How’re you! I haven’t see you in forever!” A flash of orange was all she glimpsed before the pianist was enveloped in a crushing hug. 

After what seemed like an infinity, the ginger-haired woman loosened her grip and and stepped back a little, beaming. Around her, the others looked confused and muttered among themselves. Maki noticed that Nico especially looked at a loss for words. 

“Hey Honoka,” she finally said, embarrassed. She rolled her shoulders and gave her former college classmate a once-over. “Congratulations on the movie.”

The director looked proud. “Thanks! And thank  _ you _ for agreeing to teach piano!” She realized at last that the others were staring and pivoted to face them, one arm still around Maki’s shoulder. “Oh man, sorry guys! Let me introduce you - well, Nico, you obviously already know her - this is Maki Nishikino, she’s currently Nico’s piano teacher. This is her first time here, but she’s a really important part of our team!”

Maki inclined her head as the others relaxed and called out greetings. Nearby crew turned their attention back to their tasks and carried on. Nico, though, still looked startled, and Maki felt a little satisfaction at the idea that she had at least been able to catch the actress off-guard for once. 

Formalities done, Honoka turned to Rin and Hanayo eagerly. “And you’re Maki’s friends right? She mentioned you two were coming! We’re just doing some read-throughs today; you’re totally welcome!” 

Hanayo seemed ready to faint. She attempted to stutter out a reply, but in the end, Rin answered for her. “We're mega-excited! Thanks for having us, nya!” 

As Honoka was about to say more, the clicking of heels on the concrete floor signalled the approach of a tall, blonde-haired woman with cool blue eyes. She nodded in a friendly manner at them all, then bent to whisper something in Honoka’s ear. 

Honoka winced. “Okay I’d love to chat but we have some stuff to take care of. Feel free to walk around the set a little if you’re interested! Catch ya later, Maki?” She zoomed off again like a passing whirlwind, leaving the rest of them bewildered in her wake.

One of the other crew members coughed expressively after a moment and clapped her hands together. “Okay!” she exclaimed in a soft and soothing voice. “Well, let’s get started, shall we?” She swung her silvery hair over one shoulder and smiled invitingly. “I’m Kotori, Director Honoka’s personal assistant. We have about an hour before the read-through, so I’d be happy to show you around!”

There was a murmuring of agreement and they all followed her lead. Hanayo and Rin bounced on ahead, while a woman with long hair tied into two braids who Maki vaguely knew of as Nico’s agent trailed after them. The two or three others who had been talking to the director drifted off to their duties. That left just Maki begrudgingly joining the tour in the back - and Nico, who fell into step next to her, for some reason.

“Don't you have to practice or something?” Maki asked, annoyed. 

The actress grinned and made a strange victory pose, raising both her arms with her thumb, forefinger and pinky sticking out. “Nico's already memorized all her lines because she's just  _ so _ smart!” she bragged. 

Maki found that hard to believe, but she bit the inside of her cheek and just kept walking, looking studiously away from the shorter girl. Despite the supposed informal reading session scheduled for the today, Nico was dressed in a dark blouse and frilly white skirt, which Maki had to admit looked pretty tasteful on her. Of course, Maki herself had made sure to put on a nicer outfit than usual, taking her most expensive cardigan and wearing it over a mid-length summer dress she had gotten last year; she wasn't about to be shown up by Yazawa, of all people.

They traversed the floor, weaving through the crews of busy stagehands and set coordinators. Kotori pointed out some areas of interest and answered Hanayo's incessant questions with a continuous, amiable smile. Maki half-paid attention, mulling over what she would do later on in the day instead, so she didn't hear Nico's question at first.

“Um, hello, Maki?” The pianist snapped out of her reverie and glanced at the girl next to her. Nico looked offended. “Are you listening?” 

“No, in fact I wasn't. What?”

The actress huffed. “I  _ said _ , you never told me you knew Director Kousaka. What's up with that?”

It took Maki a moment to realize who she was talking about. “Oh, Honoka?” She shrugged. “She was one of my classmates in college.” 

“You never told me that!”

“You never asked.”

Nico clicked her tongue but said nothing. She simply threw the pianist a hostile look and flounced off, pulling ahead to catch up with the rest of the group. Maki quickened her pace too, looking around now at their surroundings a bit more. Crew members were shifting around desks and chairs, setting up cameras and props to make it seem more realistic. A few people looked up as their tour passed by, but for the most part they were ignored. 

At 10 a.m., Kotori led them to the school’s former chorus room, where a nice grand piano had been set up. Maki gave it a once-over and privately regretted that she didn’t have time to take a closer look. The rest of the cast - a scattering of 12 or so people - as well as the director and a few other important-looking guests, were already waiting there, sitting on chairs that had been arranged in a circle. 

Honoka bounced over enthusiastically upon seeing them enter. “Hey guys! Right on time! Mm… Maki, you and your friends can sit against the wall and watch. Oh yeah, I think Kotori needs you guys to sign some NDAs later, too.” 

Kotori directed them to their seats, while Nico took her place next to Honoka’s seat. The sleepy-eyed woman from earlier smiled questioningly at Maki, and the pianist acknowledged her with a short bob of her head as she sat down next to her. She turned towards the pianist and leaned in conspiratorially. 

“Maki Nishikino, right? Nicocchi’s piano teacher?” 

Maki nodded after a brief moment of hesitation. “Yeah. And you’re Nico’s agent, uh…”

“Nozomi Tojo,” came the reply, accompanied by a flash of teeth. Maki felt slightly unnerved by her friendliness, as well as the strangely knowing look in those droopy eyes. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

The pianist, at a loss for what to say and wondering what exactly Nico had been saying about her, simply nodded again. Before they could say anything more, Honoka cleared her throat and they all directed their attention to the center of the room. 

The director stood in the middle of the circle and addressed them all in a clear, eager voice. “Alright! We’ll be starting the read-through in just a moment! But first, some introductions, starting with our movie’s star, Nico Yazawa!” 

Nico beamed and stood up, taking a bow. “I’m Nico Yazawa! I’ve been in the industry for several years but this is the first time I’m taking on a lead role. Thank you for this opportunity, and I look forward to working with all of you!”

There was a smattering of applause as she sat down. Nico could act like a professional when she wanted to, Maki supposed, even if her actual personality was incredibly childish.

“Next, we have our male lead…” Honoka went on to introduce the rest of the group. One by one, they all stood up and said a few words. Hanayo lapsed into near paroxysms of silent ecstasy every time, and Maki decided that it was worth coming after all, if only to see her friend so excited. 

Formalities over, the read-through began properly. Honoka herself read out the stage directions and narration, which, for the first act, painted a picture of the very room they were currently in. When she was finished, they all glanced over at Nico, who had the first line. 

Maki, without even noticing, stared intensely. It was only a read-through, not even a proper rehearsal, yet the atmosphere in the old music room changed as soon as the actress opened her mouth. Her expression took on the look of wistful longing, and her voice trembled with strains of equal nostalgia, regret, and hope alike. As she spoke, Maki felt herself transfixed, transported to a different world and a different life, full of people she had never met but were as familiar to her as the back of her hand. 

“When I think of my high school days, I’ll always remember two things: the dusty, sunlit music room that no one ever visited, and the piano that stood there like a sentinel, simply waiting to be played…”

The story in itself was nothing special. Nico’s character was an aspiring professional piano player, while the male lead played a high school boy who discovers her in the music room one day and helps her work towards her goal. Through a series of dramatic events, misunderstandings, and the intervention of their friends, they end up falling in love with each other, but the main character ends up not pursuing a relationship with the boy and decides to focus on her dreams instead. She writes one last farewell song to the boy, and they don’t see each other until years later when he attends one of her performances, after which she fondly reminisces about their time together but resolves not to regret her choices. The script was good - bittersweet, even - and it was sure to be a hit among its target audience. Maki was not at all interested in movies, but she knew enough about current trends from the occasional poster or advertisement, as well as Hanayo’s frequent, unprompted lectures, to see it could easily be a success if filmed well. 

The read-through proceeded mostly without interruption, with various people making notes in their scripts as the actors read their dialogue. Occasionally, Honoka would ask someone to repeat his or her line again, but they were finished within an hour and a half of starting. 

“Nice job, everyone!” Honoka exclaimed. She glanced at her watch and hummed. “Okay, it’s a little early, but let’s take a fifteen-minute break and talk over lunch.” 

Everyone in the room stood up gratefully, glad for the reprieve. They stretched and broke into conversation, and Kotori took the time to hurry over to Maki’s side of the room with a few forms for her, Hanayo, and Rin to fill out. Nozomi excused herself politely, saying she needed to make a phone call. Maki noticed that Nico also seemed like she was about to make her way over, but she was stopped by one of the solemn-faced executives funding the project and immediately turned all her faux charm upon him. 

“That was amazing, wasn’t it?” Hanayo demanded as they signed the papers Kotori had given them. She waved her pen around to emphasize her point. “A real read-through!” Rin chimed in her agreement, though Maki had caught her dozing off the few times she had looked over at the couple. 

Maki declined to answer. “I have to use the restroom,” she muttered, and made her exit quickly, escaping into the hallway outside. Her footsteps echoed loudly against the ground as she searched for the women’s toilet. She didn’t really need to go, but she enjoyed the chance to stretch her legs after sitting for so long. 

She took her time heading back, ruminating on the read-through and the movie in general. Nico, she had to admit, captured the main character’s personality perfectly, despite the fact that it was so different from the actress’ own. It really did seem like she had already memorized the entire script; she had barely glanced at her copy throughout the entire session. The pianist had trouble reconciling the Yazawa she knew, who was impatient and had a short attention span during classes, and the image of her tirelessly studying the movie script and her many lines. It didn’t quite add up to Maki, and she frowned because she didn’t like it when things didn’t make sense. 

Her thoughts were halted as she made her way back to the music room by the faint tinkling of piano keys. She pulled up and listened intently, making out a familiar melody, one that she had heard countless of times the past four days. With an odd thrumming in her throat, she walked down the hall and stopped in front of the music room door, peeking in through the square windows embedded in them. Indeed, Nico was seated at the piano, attempting to play from memory the song they were practicing. 

The performance was by no means error-free, and it came out more uncertain than anything. It was passable enough that the casual observer wouldn’t notice anything wrong, but it definitely still needed work. What it lacked in finesse, however, it made up for in emotion. There was something oddly expressive in the way Nico picked out the tune so carefully, swaying her body along the movement of her arms and fingers. She may not have been a pianist, but she certainly looked the part. 

“Well, well, she’s improved.” Maki jumped at the playful voice and snapped her head around. Nozomi Tojo was standing next to her, also peering through the door at Nico’s playing. The agent looked at her slyly, as if sharing a good joke. “She works hard when she wants to, doesn’t she?”

Maki attempted to hold her gaze, but ended up shifting her eyes back to Nico. She swallowed. “We still have a long way to go,” she answered warily. Nozomi chuckled at that, then fell silent. They both listened quietly for the last few notes that Nico could remember.

“I’ve known her since forever, and her dream hasn’t changed once you know,” the agent said casually. Inside, the other guests clapped as she finished and smiled almost modestly. “Oh, her attitude might be terrible on occasion, but you can’t deny she’s driven.”

Maki didn’t know why the woman was telling her this. She was responsible for teaching Nico piano, not for supporting her aspirations as an actress. Ignoring the weird, burning embarrassment in her chest, she muttered, “Let’s go in.” Nozomi hummed in assent, and the pianist slid the door open. 

The afternoon’s session was much less interesting than the read-through. The executives, Honoka, and the cast exchanged comments and concerns about the dialogue while eating the catered sandwiches provided to them. Nico contributed a little, but for the most part she just took notes and even seemed to space out once or twice. Maki thought about going home early, but she didn’t want to disrupt the discussion, and besides, Hanayo looked as enamored as ever. Rin had long wandered off to do some exploring of the set, and Maki slightly regretted not going with her.

At last, after the sandwiches had long been devoured and the ice had all melted in the pitchers of lemon water, the meeting began to wrap up. Honoka, whose energy had somehow not waned throughout the entire day, stood up to say a few words, thanking the various executives for coming by. 

“We’re putting our all into this movie, and we think we’ve got something truly special,” she finished earnestly. “Filming starts in a week, and we are so excited to get started. Thank you all again for taking the time out of your busy schedule to be with us today!”

With that, everyone stood up and bowed, then began to disperse. Nico didn’t hesitate this time and immediately strode over to where Maki and Nozomi stood, grinning boastfully.

“Well, Maki? Do you realize that it’s a privilege to be teaching the great Nico now?” 

Maki glared and was about to respond, but Hanayo rushed over and cut in between them. “Thank you so much for inviting us, Nico!” the brunette nearly shouted. She grabbed the actress’ hand and pumped it up and down. “I learned so much today!” 

Nico giggled and shook her hand back. Maki didn’t know how to feel about them becoming such good friends so quickly, but Nozomi, on her left, laughed softly. 

“I’m glad you’re making friends, Nicocchi,” she remarked, then added, “because actually you're gonna have to ask them for a ride home.”

Nico broke away from Hanayo and looked up, alarmed. “Uh, what?” 

Nozomi was looking at her phone. “I have a meeting with another client. I'm sure someone will drive you home though. Maki, maybe?” She threw the redhead a suggestive look. Maki had no idea what it meant, but it irritated her all the same.

Nico was similarly appalled. “No way. You drove me here, why can't you drive me back?” 

The agent yawned expressively. “Don't be so selfish, Nicocchi. You know I'm a busy woman. Maki, it's in your direction, right?”

Nico narrowed her eyes and stepped forward, but Maki nodded instinctively. Her mouth opened of its own accord. “Sure, I’ll take her.” 

Everyone turned to look at her. Maki wanted to look at  _ herself _ . What in the world could have possibly prompted her to agree to this? She made eye contact with the actress, who seemed completely taken aback. 

“Y-you will?” 

Even Nozomi’s brow raised slightly, but in the next moment she was smiling and thanking Maki. “There you go, Nico. All accounted for.” 

Rin came running up in the silence that followed and skidded to a halt in front of the group. “Whoa! You guys look like you've seen a ghost. Did something happen, nya?” 

Hanayo shook her head and took her girlfriend by the arm, steering her towards the exit. “Um, we'll be going first then, Maki,” she said shyly. Maki nodded at her and the couple scampered off. 

Nozomi checked her watch and sighed heavily. “Duty calls.” She patted Nico on the shoulder. “Let me know when you get home, okay?” She winked at Maki before breezing out the door, leaving the two standing awkwardly by the chairs.

Maki glanced at Nico, who was staring rather desperately over at Honoka. The director was in an animated discussion with the scriptwriter, a serious-looking woman with an elegant cut of long, flowing dark hair, and they seemed like they weren't planning on stopping soon. 

The redhead pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel a headache coming on. “Come on,” she said reluctantly. “Let's go.” She pivoted and made her way toward the hallway, not bothering to wait for the actress to follow. 

Nico caught up to her before she reached the stairs, her approach heralded by the echo of running footsteps. She pulled up alongside the pianist and they both proceeded out the front entrance of the school and to the parking lot without a word. 

Maki fished out her car keys from her purse, her high heels clicking against the asphalt as they made their way across the mostly empty lot. Her car, a small, metallic turquoise affair her parents had gotten for her when she graduated university, shone brightly in the afternoon sunlight. She unlocked the door with two clicks, the vehicle chirping merrily in response.

“Nice car,” said Nico, breaking the silence. She admired her reflection in the tinted mirrors before opening the door. “What's its name?”

Maki got in on the driver's side, sliding onto the gray leather seats, which were warm from the sun's rays. She tilted her head in confusion, not sure she understood the question. “I… didn't give it one?”

Nico stuck out her lower lip and stroked the dashboard like she was comforting it. “Poor car… Nico always names her all her things! It gives them personality!” 

Maki keyed the actress’ apartment number into the GPS and turned the ignition. The car purred into action. Nico continued patting it, and Maki saw her surreptitiously examining the backseat and control panel. 

“Hm… She looks like a Betty! Okay! That's her name now.” 

The pianist gripped tightly the steering wheel as she exited the school gates and pulled onto the main road. “That's a dumb name.”

“No, it's perfect, and I'm a genius. Right, Betty?” The actress leaned back in her seat with a satisfied air, watching the view outside. They were both quiet for a time. A feeling of discomfort hung between them that halted all conversation, and Maki wondered again why she had offered to drive in the first place. She kept on expecting Nico to make some inane comment or remark, anything to break the silence, but there was only the robotic tone of the navigator, chiming every so often to warn of an oncoming turn or merge. 

“Uh…” Unbidden, the words came forth from her mouth, seeming unnaturally loud over the rumble of the car. “Thanks for inviting us today. Hanayo enjoyed it.” 

She heard Nico shift in her seat, although she kept her eyes on the road carefully. 

“Wow~ Maki's  _ so _ dishonest. You can say you liked it too, you know!” 

“I didn't,” the pianist snapped automatically, and bit her lip immediately afterwards. She gritted her teeth and tapped a fingernail against the steering wheel several times before starting again.

“I met Honoka in university. She was a year above me.” 

“I know! You should have told me earlier! I can't believe you've been rubbing shoulders with the director all this time.” 

Maki noticed the red light ahead and stomped a little harder on the brake pedal than necessary, jerking Nico forward in her seat. “Stop. I'm trying to talk.” She inhaled deeply and tried again. 

“Honoka was… a good friend. So when she asked for help on her final project, I lent her a hand. It was me, her, and two acting majors from a different school.” Her knuckles whitened as she tightened her grip on the wheel in anger from the memory. “Honoka got it all together. But when she had finished all the preparations, with only a few weeks left before the assignment was due, the actresses cancelled on her without warning. She ended up needing to stay an extra term.” 

For once, Nico seemed like she was actually listening intently. “She couldn't find anyone else?”

“No, it was so short notice, and other acting majors were already involved in other projects. Honoka didn't want to settle for complete amateurs… so she decided to just take the hit. After that, we kind of drifted apart for awhile.” The left blinker clicked off as she made a turn. “Until she messaged me about three weeks ago saying she needed some lessons ‘for a friend.’”

She stopped talking to let her passenger process the information, drumming her fingers on the leather wheel cover. In her peripheral vision, she saw Nico frown and lean forward. “Is that why you think all actors are the spawn of the devil or something?” 

That wasn't a question she had expected. She shrugged after some thought and replied, “I never really cared much about movies anyway. I was just helping a friend.”

“Hm.” The actress fell back against her chair, and to Maki's surprise, made no further comments. She looked deep in thought, which wasn't a bad look for her. 

“Your destination is ahead on the left,” barked the GPS suddenly, making the redhead jump in her seat. She slowed the car, coming to a halt in front of a four-story, rather modest apartment with narrow doors and narrower windows. 

“Guess we're here,” Maki pronounced carefully, making it a point not to peek over at the girl next to her. Actually, she would've preferred the normal Nico after all. At least she was used to that. 

Nico's voice was soft when she spoke next. “Maki, you know I'm not gonna screw over the movie right?” Maki blinked and looked down at her own hands, now clasped in her lap. Was that what she had been worried about? She didn't know. “I worked hard for this, too. I'm not gonna throw it all away now, not when I'm so close.”

The pianist raised her head finally and met the shorter girl's gaze. Her expression was deadly serious, devoid of any mischief or slyness. 

Maki found herself giving a hesitant nod. “I’m… aware of that.” It had been not even three weeks since the irritating, stubborn, and completely unpredictable actress walked into her life for the first time, but she knew that much, at least. 

Like the sun coming out from behind a cloud, Nico's lips pulled into her signature grin. Before she could react, the other girl reached out and squished Maki's cheeks forcibly in.

“Hey!” The redhead reared back, ducking her head away sharply. Nico threw back her head and laughed.

“So don't worry so much. Maki's much cuter when her face isn't all scrunched up like that.” She opened the passenger door and swung her legs over, into the sunlight. “Thanks for the ride. See you Monday!” 

The pianist watched as Nico stepped out and closed the door behind her. The actress waved in a cutesy manner through the window, stopping to make another pose before finally walking away from the vehicle. 

Maki nudged the car out of park and inched away from the curb. As she checked the mirrors for oncoming traffic, she glanced at Nico's receding reflection one more time. 

“See you,” she whispered, to no one in particular, and started the drive home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this is officially the longest work I've ever actually published, and it's not even halfway over. Thanks for reading thus far! I realized I know little about playing piano and music, but even less about movie-making. All mistakes are unintentional, probably.


	3. Etude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Etude: an instrumental musical composition designed to provide practice material for perfecting a particular musical skill.

**i.**

The days that followed settled into an uneasy rhythm. The lessons continued as before, with Maki mercilessly ordering Nico to play the same passages over and over until they were firmly imprinted in her brain. Monday through Thursday, she passed the morning at the pianist’s apartment, going home with little black notes still swirling in her head and her fingers still tingling from the workout she gave them. In the afternoon and on the weekends, she practiced by herself, though how long she did so mostly depended on her mood and patience. She wasn’t sure how things would change once filming actually began, but for now she was adapting quite well to her unusual schedule. 

What she  _ did _ have trouble adapting to was Maki Nishikino. After a couple of weeks under her tutelage, Nico had thought she was long used to the irritatingly pretty pianist who was totally devoid of both humor and manners. The woman insulted actors without a second thought and was extra hard on Nico for no reason. In terms of being a decent human being she basically failed completely. Under it all, though, Nico had realized that she was conscientious about her work and was, admittedly, a good teacher who could identify her weaknesses and hammer them out. For that, the actress could at least respect her and find some common ground. It wasn’t like she had any other option anyway.

_ However _ . Something had changed recently. Nico couldn’t put her finger on it, but she could trace it back to the day of the read-through, when they had that surprisingly illuminating conversation in Maki’s car. After that, the pianist had become more reticent. Oh, she still bit back when Nico prodded her, but there was no denying that the overall feeling of their lessons had become  _ different _ . There was an undercurrent of hesitation bordering on delicacy, a previously nonexistent balance that now threatened to tip at any moment. 

For example, the movies. Nico had so selflessly lent films from her very own collection, yet Maki had refused to discuss them or even say if she watched them or not. Talk about bad manners! But when Nico had asked about them again the weekend after the visit to the set, Maki hadn’t responded with her usual deadpan response, something about “not discussing anything unrelated to the lesson.” Her pink lips had instead thinned into a nervous line and she had looked up at the ceiling, as if she was searching for something.

“I watched a few,” she had replied finally, startling Nico. But then she had clammed up and hadn’t elaborated any further, no matter how much the actress probed her.

Very strange indeed.

The actress observed these moments of wavering uncertainty with equal interest and suspicion. Their lessons remained as grueling and uncompromising as ever, but Maki herself seemed to be struggling to maintain her unflappable facade. She always looked like she was on the cusp of saying  _ something _ , although Nico had no idea what.

Nico mulled over what it could possibly be as she dutifully worked through some warm-up exercises as per usual. Her slave-driver of a tutor frowned at her disapprovingly from her right. “Stop getting distracted. This is important.” 

Nico tossed her head, annoyed, and sent her fingers up and down the keys again. After practicing these drills almost every day, she could basically do them without thinking, and she didn’t see why Maki always made her waste time on them when they should be concentrating on the movie’s pieces instead. 

The redhead continued frowning as she looked at Nico’s hands. “You still need to curve more. You start hitting the keys with the flat of your fingers when you go faster, but that makes it harder for you to switch positions later.” 

Nico purposely scrunched up her hands in an exaggerated manner, until they looked like raptor claws. Maki simply sighed and folded her arms. “Look, can you please take this seriously?”

“Nico’s always 100% serious! It’s not my fault that Maki isn’t good at explaining things!” That was a lie. Maki was actually pretty good at teaching. It had only been a week since the read-through, but she was now able to basically play the whole first piece through without looking at the sheet music, thanks to her teacher’s harsh schedule and methods. Maki claimed that they still needed to give it some work, but to Nico it was a miracle that she had gotten so far in such a short time already. 

The pianist muttered something under her breath and, without warning, reached out her hand and placed it over Nico’s right one. It fell heavy and warm upon her skin and a shiver ran up the actress’ spine. 

“What the-” 

“Like  _ this _ .” Maki used her fingers to bend Nico’s own, until they were poised upon the keys, pressing them down all at once in a random chord. “It’ll look more elegant this way too. That’s what you want, right?”

Nico simply gaped at her. The sound of the piano dragged on for a long moment, before Maki suddenly snatched her hand away. She fluttered it uncertainly, a brilliant shade of red creeping up her neck, until she tangled it in the ends of her hair and began twisting so frantically it looked almost painful.

“A-Anyway!” she stammered. “Just pay attention to your hand positioning. Don’t make me say it again.”

The actress had no good reply at the moment and just nodded, resuming the exercise - this time, with her fingers consciously curved.

This was exactly what she meant by Maki being up to something. The pianist was acting weird, very different from her usual grumpy, unloveable self. And Nico was determined to get to the bottom of the issue one way or another. 

“How’re Hanayo and Rin?” she ventured, beginning her attack during one of their ten-minute breaks on a sunny Wednesday afternoon. Nico had had doubts that they could fill the full two hours of each lesson considering they met four times a week, but Maki had proved more than capable of cramming as much practice as possible into that amount of time. These single breaks, set firmly in the middle of each session, were the only chance the actress had to engage her teacher in conversation. More often than not, though, Maki wouldn’t speak to her anyway, instead choosing to pore over the sheet music, making notes and mumbling to herself.

The redhead didn’t even glance up at her. “They’re fine.” 

Nico rolled her eyes at the curt response and persisted. “You should invite me to get coffee with all of you again! Last time was fun, right?”

“I didn’t invite you. You barged your way in.” 

“Details, details. You’re just jealous that your friends like me better than you.” 

Maki just sighed irritably and continued flipping through the pages before her, her neatly-trimmed fingernails rustling the paper. Nico, discouraged, fell back against the sofa and took a sip of water from the glass she had helped herself to before they had started for the day. 

“I suppose,” Maki’s voice rang out suddenly, after a few minutes of silence. Her gaze was trained steadily on the sheet music. “Hanayo would like it if she could visit the set again.” Nico’s eyebrows raised. She was unaccustomed to Maki initiating conversation, and she sat up quickly to make sure she wouldn’t miss the opportunity. 

“She’s definitely welcome to come and watch us film! We’re starting soon, maybe in another two weeks, I think? Of course, Maki’s  _ totally _ welcome, too. You can come see the great Nico Yazawa in action.” 

A pause, and a flash of white teeth as the pianist bit her lower lip. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, which did not escape Nico’s notice. There it was again, the gut feeling that Maki wanted to say something more. Nico burned with curiosity, but she waited, willing the pianist to voice what was on her mind. 

“Actually,” the other girl began, visibly taking a deep breath, but a loud beeping cut through her words, snapping the both of them back to reality. Despite Nico’s insistence that they were both adults and could keep track of a mere ten minutes on their own, Maki made a point of setting a timer so that they wouldn’t waste any time. The actress was almost sure that the tutor did it only to annoy her. 

Maki shot up from her chair, looking almost relieved by the alarm. She tapped at the plastic timer and it went silent. “Time’s up,” she remarked, speaking a little faster than usual. “Back to work.” 

Nico stood up indignantly. “Actually  _ what _ ?” she pressed, but the moment was gone and passed. The tutor resumed her haughty expression and took her place at the side of the grand piano.

“Forget it. Let’s practice.” 

“No! Tell me!” Nico stomped over to where Maki was already sitting and bent close, her hands on her hips, with the intent of looking as threatening as possible. She was gratified to see the redhead shrink back, although she looked more flustered than fearful. “What were you gonna say?”

Maki averted her gaze studiously. “Nothing!” she protested, though again one hand rose to catch at the ends of her hair self-consciously. Nico simply stared at her intently, making it clear that she wasn’t about to budge. When she realized that Nico wouldn’t be giving up any time soon, she glared and finally growled, “Fine. I’ll tell you after. Now will you please sit down so we can continue?”

Nico briefly considered pressing further, but after thinking about it she relented and stepped back. Being able to extract a promise from Maki Nishikino was difficult, but the woman always kept her word. All she needed to do was wait out the hour.

The pianist didn’t make it easy for her. Without the sheet music on the stand, Nico kept making mistake after mistake as she fought to recall the entire song she had learned. Maki wanted her to start learning the second piece by the next week, so their practice now consisted mostly of Nico attempting to play from beginning to end, and doing it over again when the tutor wasn’t satisfied with her performance. Perhaps due to the actress’ prior nagging, she seemed to drive her student even harder than usual, annoyance clearly showing on her face. It didn’t help, of course, that Nico kept one eye on the clock, eager to find out what Maki Nishikino was hiding. 

At long last, the redhead threw her hands up and sighed heavily in resignation. “Alright, alright, we’re done. Obviously, you’re not going to be able to concentrate while you’re so fixated on this.”

Nico beamed and struck a pose. “Ready to spill the beans, Nishikino?”

Maki groaned and shook her head. “Ugh. Seriously? Are you  _ sure _ you’re older than me? Because I’ve seen more maturity from my six-year-olds.” 

“That’s ironic, considering how childish you’re being now.” Maki shot her an indignant look, but Nico cut her off before she could retort. “No more stalling! What’s the hot gossip?”

Maki met the shorter girl’s intrigue with an inexplicable frown. She had that restless look in her eyes again, as if she wanted to bring up something that she couldn’t quite put into words. The actress waited, the other girl’s nervousness suddenly rubbing off on her and make her heartbeat quicken a little. What could possibly be making cool-as-several-cucumbers Maki Nishikino so jumpy? 

The redhead cleared her throat, her hands dropping to her lap, where they fidgeted absentmindedly. The silence was only broken by the ticking of the clock mounted at the other end of the room. 

“You know how you invited us to the set last week,” she said, her tone making it more a statement than a question. Nico nodded impatiently, not comprehending where this could be leading to. Maki bit her lip again, and by the careful way she spoke, the actress could tell that the other girl was weighing each word in her mind. “Well, Honoka thought it was good for morale… or something.” Her mouth twisted skeptically as she continued to speak.

“Anyway, she contacted me a few days ago to ask if I could, you know, visit while filming from time to time.” She flashed a meaningful look at Nico, as if hoping that was enough to get the point across. “Especially when they’re doing your piano scenes.” 

The actress remained mystified. What was Maki getting at? She had never seen her so agitated before, even during that time when Nico had discovered those slightly questionable fashion magazines hidden in her coffee table. 

Abruptly, the redhead started speaking faster, like she had resolved to pose her question as quickly as possible. Her hands dug into the fabric of her jeans as she finally voiced the question she had been leading up to. “So. I don’t know. If it’s okay with you. Honoka wants me to be your character adviser.”

The redhead looked up at Nico expectantly as she finished, waiting for her reply. The actress simply gaped.

“Wait, that’s it?”

The pianist’s cheeks were the same color as her hair at this point. She ducked her head in a chagrined manner and affirmed sullenly, “Um. Yeah.” 

Nico couldn’t help but burst into a fit of giggles at the sight of the normally collected Maki scowling at her feet, blushing furiously like a child caught stealing cookies. Maki looked scandalized and immediately demanded for her to stop, but the whole situation had been so anticlimactic that the actress was unable to stop herself from laughing for several minutes.

“What the hell, Maki,” she gasped out at last, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye. “I thought, like, someone had  _ died _ or something? “ She guffawed again as Maki crossed her arms petulantly.

“I just didn’t know how you’d take it,” the piano tutor snapped defensively, gaining some of her usual fire back, though she still sounded mostly sheepish. “Excuse me for wanting to check with you first.”

Nico did curb her laughter at that. Her eyes widened as she processed what Maki was saying and she looked up, startled. Sure, any normal human being would have the decency to ask beforehand, but it had long been established that Maki was much too condescending to be decent. The fact that she was asking for permission was actually… kind of touching. 

The tutor misunderstood the look that Nico was giving her and dropped her gaze back down to her hands. “Forget it. Sorry I asked. You don't need my advice.” 

Nico quickly recovered. “No! That's not it at all.” She halted, unsure of how to continue. For a spoiled piano teacher with a huge attitude problem, Maki sure did scare easily. “That… That would be pretty cool, actually.” 

The other girl lifted her head ever so slightly, and Nico could almost see her ears pricking up. “I just didn't think you'd ask me about something like that. Especially if Director Kousaka already told you it was fine.”

Maki's brow crinkled. “You think I'd just show up without saying anything?” 

That was a fair point, but Nico only shrugged after considering it for a bit. While she didn’t really expect the piano teacher to do something like that, you could never tell with Maki Nishikino. Seeing how offended she looked, the actress decided to change the subject. “Anyway. Yeah. I mean obviously you can’t teach me how to  _ act _ , but you can tell me if I’m playing the piano funny or whatever, right?” A grin tugged at her lips as she thought about the proposal some more, and she couldn’t resist a little teasing. “You know, Maki, if you wanted to spend more time with me, all you had to do was say so.” 

“I don’t. Actually, nevermind. I’m gonna say no to Honoka.” 

Nico grinned, privately pleased that Maki was back to her usual acerbic self. She crossed her legs primly on the piano bench, a strange excitement welling in her throat. Though she knew that filming was still a few weeks off, she couldn’t stop her lips from forming a question.

“So when do you start?”

 

**ii.**

“Are you listening, Nicocchi?”

Nozomi’s sly voice cut through the haze in the actress’ head and she blinked, remembering where she was. She looked confusedly at her agent, who had an annoyingly knowing gleam in her eyes. 

“I’m hurt, Nicocchi,” Nozomi said, clutching her chest in mock pain. “I come all this way to see how you’re doing with filming, and you spend the whole time making eyes at Maki?”

Nico felt heat rise to her cheeks. “I wasn’t doing that!” she protested, even as she realized that she  _ did _ just happen to be spacing out with her face turned towards the pianist’s general direction. She couldn’t exactly blame Nozomi for thinking she was staring at Maki, but really, after being her friend for so long she should’ve known better than to make that assumption. 

They were 4 weeks into a rigorous filming schedule. She and Nozomi were sitting in the gymnasium of the school, munching on takeout during the 45-minute lunch break between takes. On the other side of the floor, Maki sat talking and eating with Honoka. Nico wondered what they were discussing. 

To accommodate the filming schedule, their lessons had been cut to only twice a week, which Maki had reluctantly deemed acceptable with the caveat that Nico practiced on her own every day. Nico continued to see her just as often, however, due to Maki’s new role as part-time character adviser. 

Technically, Maki Nishikino only had to come in on the days when Nico would be using the piano extensively. She was here mostly to do a lot of what she did during their private lessons - which was, of course, to criticize Nico’s posture and playing. But after a hesitant few times, she started coming more frequently, until she was here basically every weekday. Sometimes Hanayo tagged along with her, although Rin was too busy with her work at the elementary school to join. Maki usually left in the late afternoon, and once when Nico questioned her she insisted that she only came because she had free time in the morning. Still, it was  _ kind _ of nice to see her, if only because Nico had kind of gotten used to the routine of their lessons. 

Nozomi faked a cough, and Nico turned her attention to her friend again. She had a smirk on her face for some reason. With exaggerated delicacy, the agent asked, “How’s filming going?”

“Good,” Nico replied shortly. Nozomi insisted on coming around every so often no matter what project the actress had. She didn’t visit nearly as often as Maki, and usually not for as long either, but seeing as this was Nico’s first major role, she made a point of checking in about once every other week. 

Nozomi thrust her chin in Maki’s direction gently, saying, “She’s here a lot, huh?” The same enigmatic smirk remained on her face, as if she was implying more than her question indicated.

Nico emitted a noncommittal grunt, refusing to rise to the bait. She spotted a flash of gold from the far side of the room and decided to flip the conversation before it got any more irritating. “How about you? I know you only come here to talk to that public relations woman. Um, what was her name again? Ayase?” 

“How dare you,” exclaimed Nozomi, feigning a gasp of indignation. “You know I’m only here for my favorite client! I’d never have such base ulterior motives.” Still, her eyes were drawn tellingly towards the Director of Public Relations, who was making her way over to where Honoka was sitting. Nico glanced over as well, and they both watched from a distance as she smiled politely at Maki and Hanayo before taking a seat in one of the empty chairs. 

“Yeah. Right.” Nico had known Nozomi too long to not recognize when she had her sights set on a girl, but she didn’t bother pressing it. “Anyway, I’m doing great.” 

And it was the truth, too. Maybe it was just some honeymoon phase, but despite how tight the filming schedule often was, the actress never felt pressured or stressed. Director Kousaka was definitely ditzy at times, but when she sat in the chair and the cameras were rolling, she transformed into the kind of director Nico had always dreamed of working for. She had a sharp eye for framing shots, and she always knew exactly what she was going for and how to get there. To top it all off, she seemed to have a relentless supply of praise and enthusiasm even when they were shooting the exact same take for the tenth time in a row. The rest of the cast members were similarly dedicated, talented actors who all shared a common goal. 

The script was good, the people were good, the work was good. Life couldn’t be any more  _ good _ right now. Well, maybe a certain piano teacher could be a little less prickly…

Nozomi’s smile was genuine now, and she was looking at Nico with soft eyes. “I’m glad to hear that. Really.” In a rush, Nico was reminded of why Nozomi and she had remained friends for so long in the first place. As sappy as it sounded, the agent knew her better than anyone and could probably tell exactly how satisfied she was. 

They chewed contentedly for a few minutes, a feeling of warmth between them. Finally, Nico swallowed and waved Nozomi away impatiently. “Alright, enough of that. Don’t you have someplace to be? Another client or something?”

“Jealous, Nicocchi?” The agent giggled and brushed some hair out of her face. “But now that you mention it, I  _ do _ have something to bring up with Ms. Ayase. About marketing tactics for your debut.”

Nico repressed the urge to wolf-whistle. She settled for a smug smile instead. “Uh-huh. Sure, use me as an excuse to talk to her. That’s a good plan.” 

Nozomi dodged her jibe, countering with one of her own. “You’re welcome to tag along. I know you’re just  _ dying _ to talk to Ms. Nishikino, since you can’t stop looking at her.” 

Nico belatedly realized that her eyes were drifting towards the far side of the room again and tore her gaze away forcefully. “No thanks. And I’m  _ not _ looking at her.” 

Nozomi laughed and entreated her a few more times, but Nico refused. She didn’t want to give her friend more reasons to imply things that were blantantly false. Finally, the agent stood and started walking towards the others, leaving Nico to eat by herself. Which was just fine with her! Lunch wouldn’t last forever, and if she had extra time she should probably be rehearsing anyway. She decided she’d invite her co-star, who didn’t look too busy either, to practice some lines after. 

In the end, though, she didn’t quite have the heart to carry her plan out. On second thought, she didn’t want to look like some obsessed newbie who was trying too hard. She settled with observing Nozomi and the others, just because it had been a big lunch and she wanted to sit and digest. Nozomi approached them with her characteristic, laid-back charm, and even if Nico couldn’t hear them she could imagine how the conversation was going. She grinned to herself as she watched the agent lean closer to Eli Ayase and engage her. The blonde  _ was _ pretty attractive - a little too icy for Nico’s tastes, but at least her brow wasn’t furrowed all the time, like the redhead sitting a few seats down from her. 

They all seemed to have accepted Nozomi into the flow of conversation easily. Even Maki looked like she was getting along with her, in a kind of reserved, lofty way. A wave of discomfort suddenly washed over Nico and she quickly turned her attention to the other staff and crew, all eating together among the equipment and props. It took her a moment to understand that she was feeling a bit of jealousy, although she had no idea why. 

She breathed in deep and looked around the gymnasium. Now that she thought about it, the setting of the movie was pretty nostalgic. Granted, she was far too old to be reminiscing about her high school days, especially when they hadn’t been that great. She had been alone a lot back then too. Not even the theater club members had really ever warmed up to her, probably because she had been so driven while the rest of them had mostly been fooling around. Well, now look where she was, on the pathway to becoming rich and famous while they were probably all stuck at their second-rate office jobs. Her hard work hadn’t been for nothing.

When her line of sight swung around to Nozomi and the rest again, she caught Maki staring in her direction. Their eyes met, and suddenly a rush of blood went straight to her ears, making her feeling uncomfortably hot. The pianist looked away immediately, as if trying to pass it off as a coincidence, whipping her head back around so quickly that the others gave her strange looks. What the hell was that about? She was at a loss, both at Maki’s staring as well as her own perplexing reaction. 

Nico considered walking over and joining the group. She suddenly desperately wanted to know what they were all talking about. The thought of slinking in after Nozomi, though, went directly against her sense of pride and self-respect. She struggled with the idea, weighing the pros and cons in her head. Just as she was about to get up and casually sidle along until she just happened to pass by them completely by coincidence however, a panicked voice cut through the lunchtime hubbub.

“ _ What _ ?”

The gym immediately fell silent and everyone’s heads turned as Honoka leapt out of her seat. She had turned her chair slightly away from everyone else to receive a call, and she stood now holding the phone with a look of shock on her face, her rigid body posture framed against the white backdrop of the back wall. Kotori came bustling over worriedly, while the others looked on in concern. 

Honoka lowered her voice as she saw that everyone’s gaze was upon her, but in the sudden stillness they could still hear her clearly even when she cupped her hand over her mouth. She had never been good at being quiet. 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean - No, of course not. Okay. Yes. We can do that. Definitely.” Nico couldn’t recall ever seeing the director look so frantic before. She instinctively felt that her peaceful days of filming were coming to an end. 

The actress got up and walked closer, all petty thoughts from earlier dashed out of her head. She moved to stand by Nozomi, who was now also on her feet. Maki inched closer too, weirdly, and she spoke to Nico directly for the first time that day, whispering in confusion, “What’s going on?”

Nico shrugged at her. No one knew, but whatever it was, it didn’t look good. The three of them watched as Honoka finished her phone call, each of them listening in hard to her one-sided responses in hopes of a clue.

When she finally ended the call, her expression was somber. “Emergency meeting, guys,” she called out, raising her voice until it echoed around the gymnasium. “All cast and crew. Could someone get Umi?” 

Three production assistants ran off to gather any stragglers while the rest of the staff congregated towards the front of the room. Nico tried not to notice how Maki fell in next to her, squeezing in close to make room for other people. Honoka didn’t bother getting on the stage, but she did take the megaphone that Kotori offered to her. It had seemed to materialize out of thin air; Nico hadn’t even seen her get it. 

About two minutes later, everyone was standing around the director, waiting on her to begin speaking. Umi, the severe-looking scriptwriter who had long become a familiar face on set and occasionally offered advice for line delivery, was one of the last few people to stumble in, and she hurriedly took her place near the front, next to Eli Ayase. She was frazzled and out of breath, as if she had run all the way to the gym from the 3rd floor of the school. 

Any muttering and shifting around halted as Honoka turned on the megaphone and cleared her throat. “Hey everyo-” They all winced as the whine of feedback sliced through her words and she yanked the device away from her lips. She tried again gingerly, this time with more success. “Hey everyone. Sorry about that. I don’t mean to alarm you, but I have some bad news.” All their eyes were trained on her as she cleared her throat and took a deep breath. 

“So I just got a call from our executive producer. Apparently he’s just learned that one of our rival studios is also in the middle of filming a high school movie right now. This normally wouldn’t be a problem, but based off of his impression, the film is going to hit really close in tone and style to ours.” Nico’s mind raced frantically. In essence, their movie could potentially be facing way more competition than expected, which meant less revenue, which meant failure and a life doomed to obscurity. In short, it was not good. “We have two options: adjust our schedule to aim for release  _ before _ they can make a move, or delay our release until at least a month after theirs is out of theaters. And well, he wants us to do the first option.” 

The crowd fell silent, each person processing the information. Eli Ayase was the first to speak, her bright blue eyes flashing as she raised her voice. “What’s the new timeframe?” The others nodded in agreement. 

Honoka scratched her head at the question. “Well, post-production is going to take a certain amount of time, but if we work hard and work fast, we can make sure it doesn’t drag on. To give the team enough time, we’re looking at…” She thought for a moment, while the rest of them waited with bated breath. “We need to finish a month earlier than planned.” 

A month. Nico’s blood ran cold. She heard muttering coming from around her at the revelation. Four weeks was a substantial amount of time; the new schedule meant more hours and fewer takes, so their margin for error had just gotten a lot narrower. 

Still, the situation wasn’t as bad as she expected. As filming schedules went, they had already been pretty lax, so picking up the pace now wouldn’t be a huge issue. She could see that the others were coming to this realization as well. Tensed shoulders were relaxed and the strained silence was replaced with encouraging mutters. She was about to step forward and share her opinion, but her co-star beat her to it.

“I think I speak for all of us when I say that we all want to make the best movie we can make,” he said, raising his voice to be heard above the crowd. “We’re all committed to the film’s success and we’re ready to put in the hours to make it happen.” He smiled over at Nico and winked. Jerk. Well, Nico was okay with someone else stealing the spotlight once in awhile. She couldn’t be  _ too _ greedy. She simply nodded and smiled back, intent on showing her support. 

Nozomi, to her right, however, frowned and leaned closer to her. “Not to rain on your parade, Nicocchi,” she whispered, “but don’t you still have to finish learning that piano song? Will you have enough time?” 

Crap. She had forgotten about that. 

“Oh god, you’re right,” Honoka said loudly into the megaphone, looking straight at them. Despite being quite airheaded and prone to spacing out, the director had unusually sharp ears. “How far are you along on the song, Nico? Can you learn it in time?” 

“I, uh…” Nico’s throat suddenly felt very dry. To be honest, she didn’t know. She was a little better at the piano now, although she had admitted early on to herself that she’d never be a natural at the instrument. With the filming, their lessons were less frequent too, which meant that they were progressing through the song at a slower rate. Maki had planned for them to finish with plenty of time before the scene, but that was on the old schedule.

Honoka saw her hesitation and pressed her, oblivious to the fact that everyone could hear the conversation. “I mean, I think we can get a double… I was really hoping for shots of  _ you _ performing but we could handle it in post…”

Now, Nico was normally a coherent - no, eloquent - girl who could talk her way into and out of anything. But it was a little difficult to think about what to say when suddenly everyone was waiting on her answer. She couldn’t just say “no problem,” because she didn’t know if that was true or not. Or couldn’t she? It’s not like she hadn’t done that before, and it usually worked out. God, if only Honoka would stop staring at her so expectantly- 

“She can do it.” 

Nico whirled around, startled, as a hand settled on her shoulder. Maki was suddenly at her side, speaking in a measured and confident voice that carried over the crowd.

“We’ll need to have more lessons but I’ll have her ready in time. Don’t worry.” Her lips pulled into an approximation of a smile, to Nico’s complete shock, but she was even more surprised by what came next. “She works hard. It’ll be fine.” 

With the pianist’s reassurance, everyone else breathed a sigh of relief. 

“Thanks Maki! You’re a lifesaver!” With that, Honoka hopped into action, outlining the new proposed schedule and assigning people different responsibilities. Crew members began to break off into groups, rushing away to various corners of the school. Nozomi could only give her a searching look before heading away to review some details with Eli as well. Soon, it was just Nico and Maki left standing awkwardly near the stage. 

“Hey, so-”

“Hey-”

They both tried to speak at the same time and stopped uncertainly. Maki seemed abruptly timid, in contrast to the self-assured face she had just displayed. The actress decided to forge on.

“Thanks for that,” she said quickly, somehow embarrassed. In her head, she told herself to get a grip. The great actress Nico Yazawa did  _ not _ get flustered by timely rescues. “I wasn’t sure what to say.” 

Maki gave an acknowledging nod, her hand absentmindedly fiddling with her hair again like it always did. Nico almost giggled at the gesture but refrained, swallowing the laughter. 

“No problem. We’re going to have to start meeting after filming or during weekends though, if we want to make this work. I’ll see about my other students.” 

Nico cocked her head. “Are you sure? That’s…” She wasn’t sure how to phrase her question. This was a far cry from the Maki Nishikino who thought movies were pointless and actors were a bane to society. “A lot to ask of you,” she finished, after a brief pause. 

“It’s fine. I want…” The redhead cast her gaze to her feet. “I want you to succeed.”

Nico froze at the words. Did she hear correctly? There was a beat of silence, in which nothing could be heard but the bustle of the activity around them. 

Maki seemed to finally realize what she said, because she added quickly, “I want the movie to succeed, I mean. Honoka deserves it.” 

That made more sense. Nico shook off her surprise and grinned. “Well don’t you worry, Maki. Once the critics see my performance, we’re gonna win like, a million awards. And you’ll even get to say you helped!” 

Maki rolled her eyes. “Oh please,” she began to say, when a production assistant shyly approached them and beckoned towards Nico.

“Um, Ms. Yazawa? We’re going to start filming again soon. In the classroom.” 

They shuffled apart, Nico suddenly conscious of how closely they had been standing together. “Yeah sure, be there in five.” She flashed her teeth in her signature smile. The assistant scurried off, and Nico turned to face her tutor.

“Well, duty calls. See you later?” 

Maki nodded and waved her off. “Let’s talk about lessons after.” 

“Sure, Maki.” Nico pivoted on one heel and walked away, feeling unusually giddy. Honoka’s news had been bad, but they were going to make things happen. She was extremely pumped suddenly, and she couldn’t wait to get back into the role. 

Like always, of course, she’d give it her all.

 

**iii.**

“Ugh… Maki, faster… I can’t take it anymore…” Nico squirmed with every movement, on the brink of being overwhelmed by the sensations in her lower body.

Maki’s voice was impassive and unimpressed. “You should’ve gone to the bathroom before we left, like I told you to. Stop being a baby, we’ll be there in another five minutes.” 

Nico slumped dramatically against the passenger seat, then cringed as the action sent another pulse of pressure towards her uncomfortable bladder. Okay, so maybe drinking all that water after the last take of the day hadn’t been a good idea, and not stopping to use the toilet before getting in Maki’s car despite already needing to pee had been even worse, but how was she supposed to know about the traffic jam backing up several main roads for six blocks? Thankfully, the pianist had agreed to stop at Nico’s apartment, which was closer, instead of driving all the way to hers.

The new filming deadline had played havoc with everyone’s schedules, but especially Nico’s and Maki’s. In fact, the two had all but given up trying to establish an actual, concrete timetable and had resorted to getting in practice whenever possible. Fresh from filming, Nico would go to Maki’s penthouse instead of going home, and would work on memorizing the piece there for another two or three hours before finally taking the train back and collapsing into bed. At first, Nico would call a taxi to take her to the tutor’s place, but Maki began showing up to the set almost daily, and she would give Nico a ride instead. During lunch breaks, they’d wolf down their food and rush off to the music room for some scant, precious minutes of practice. On the weekends, Nico would alternate between practicing on her own and studying her lines. In short, she had practically no free time.

The funny thing was, though, that Nico didn’t  _ feel _ overworked. Rationally, she knew that she was taking on a lot more than anyone expected of her, but that didn’t change the fact that she was filled with a mysterious, boundless energy. Despite Nozomi’s constant cautioning to “take it easy,” and the hair and makeup department’s gentle but increasing complaints that the bags under her eyes could hardly be hidden, she remained unconvinced that she could be really running herself into the ground. Actually, she felt more attuned to her career and role than ever, and every step she took towards perfecting her performance reaffirmed that feeling. She didn’t know why the others couldn’t tell how just how  _ in the zone _ she was, but she was determined to prove it to them anyway. 

“We’re close,” Maki pronounced abruptly, slowing the car and flicking on the left blinker. Nico breathed a sigh of relief as she stopped furiously counting up in multiples of 7 to distract herself from her increasing urge to loosen her bladder. She was out of the car before it had even finished moving, which Maki protested.

“Just come up,” Nico said impatiently, hopping from toe to toe from the strain. “God, I’m about to  _ burst _ .” She turned and dashed for the stairs, not caring to see what the redhead did, and not stopping to lock the entrance behind her either.

A blissful minute later, Nico was in a much calmer state of mind. She washed her hands cheerfully at the sink and took her time drying them. It really had been touch and go for a moment; any longer and she probably would’ve  _ died _ . Now that she thought about it, she realized that she hadn’t bothered to tell Maki the apartment number, or even where to park. Splashing some water on her face, she hurriedly exited the bathroom - only to skid to a halt when she saw the pianist standing in the middle of her living room, inspecting some objects on the mantle. 

“Oh - you’re here.” The words came out a little more brusquely than she intended, and she hastened to gloss over them. “Did you - Did you park okay?”

Maki jerked her shoulders in response. “Yeah, there was metered parking close by. I would’ve just waited, but I didn’t know how long you’d be.” Her bright eyes, however, glittered with curiosity as she gazed around the room, and Nico swallowed hard, suddenly hyper-aware of her apartment’s small dimensions. She hadn’t really expected Maki to ever come here. Compared to in the spaciousness of her penthouse, the redhead looked quite out of place, almost larger-than-life.

She cleared her throat, more to regain her composure than anything. “Uh, why don’t you sit down? I gotta get some stuff, and then we can go. Do you want, like, tea or something? I’ll get you some tea.” She bustled off before Maki had a chance to reply.

Safe in the kitchen alcove, her hands busy with the kettle and teabags, Nico could think a little more clearly. She didn’t often have people over; usually, only Nozomi visited, and occasionally her siblings when her mom was busy and she was between gigs. That would explain her nervousness, but obviously, she didn’t need to be nervous. It was just Maki Nishikino, after all. 

The thought was oddly not as comforting as she imagined it would be. 

When she came out, tea tray in her hands, Maki was perched primly on the edge of the couch, glaring reproachfully at the keyboard Nico used for practice, which was resting on the coffee table. She gently set the tray down next to the instrument and walked around the table to take a seat next to the redhead. 

Maki crossed her arms. “Have you been practicing on this thing the entire time?” she asked, indicating the keyboard with a nod. “It’s barely playable!”

Nico scrunched her brow. “Hey, don’t make fun of Shirley. She has feelings, you know.” She took one of the mugs for herself and handed the other to Maki, who took it absently and cupped it in her slender hands. Nico found herself focusing on the way the other girl gripped the mug, delicately but firmly, as she reached out and held down the middle C key in evident distaste. 

“You can barely call this a keyboard. It doesn’t even have a full 88 keys!”

Nico rolled her eyes, amused by Maki’s predictable pretentiousness. “Not all of us have room for a grand piano, Maki.” She thought again about the tutor’s gigantic penthouse and the way her own apartment paled in comparison, and she hid her subsequent frown by taking a sip of tea. 

Maki grumbled something under her breath that sounded like, “No wonder you always bang on the keys so hard… no weights...” and continued looking around the room, as if she was searching for something. Nico stole a few glances too and noted with satisfaction that her rigorous cleaning schedule had paid off. Not a speck of dust could be seen among the shelves stuffed with DVDs, the posters and a few select figurines from her idol fan days (which she never quite grew out of). 

The ensuing silence stretched on interminably, to the point where Nico could actually hear the tick of the kitchen clock in the next room. It occurred to her that besides rushing from place to place in Maki’s car, this was the first time they had been alone together in a not-work related setting. Between filming, piano practice, and meeting with Nozomi, it had been awhile since she had slowed down like this. It was kind of therapeutic, even if she had to spend it with the most infuriating piano teacher on the planet. Yeah, they probably had to get going soon, but now that Nico was sunk into the alluring embrace of her living room couch and had a warm mug of tea in her hands, she was loathe to get up. 

“You look,” started Maki without warning, making Nico nearly choke on a mouthful of her drink, “kind of tired. Are you doing… okay?” The question came out as a near-whisper, almost like an afterthought as the redhead stared a hole through the cup in her hands.

Nico was pretty sure that if her eyebrows went any higher, they would fly right off her adorable little head. She gasped dramatically and whipped her head around to face Maki. “Could it be? Does  _ Maki Nishikino _ actually care about Nico-Nico-me?”

Maki didn’t blush like Nico thought she would. Instead, she set down her mug with a decisive  _ clink _ on the coffee table and squinted at her. “Nico, I’m serious. You look  _ really _ tired.” Her right hand twitched, as if she was actually about to reach out or something, and Nico pulled back sharply.

She barked a short, anxious laugh that came out as more of a sigh and scooted down the sofa a little. “Um, geez Maki, take it easy. I’m fine, okay? Actually, I’m better than fine. Nico Yazawa has actually  _ never _ been this fine.” 

Maki’s gaze dropped, but she continued, all the while examining her nails. “I’m just saying, you’ve had so much filming going on lately, and we’ve been practicing a lot. So if you want to take a break today…” 

A dull anger flared up unbidden in the pit of Nico’s stomach. “I don’t have that kind of time,” she snapped, cutting the redhead off. She plunked her cup down on the table as well and stood before Maki could say more. “I’ll grab my things. Then let’s get out of here.” Turning on her heel, she walked the short six steps down the hall to her room and shut the door behind her. 

Alone in her room, the anger subsided as quickly as it had appeared. She sat down on her small but comfy bed and breathed in deep, feeling a bit foolish about her outburst. The past two weeks had been - not exactly difficult for her, but certainly just slightly challenging, and she was probably taking things out on Maki unfairly. She patted her cheeks twice to knock some sense in herself and got to her feet. After changing into some more comfortable clothing, she guiltily slipped out back into the hall.

Maki was standing again, still nursing the cup of tea as she peered at some framed photos on one of the shelves. Nico opened her mouth to apologize, or at least say something, when Maki spotted her. Instead of expressing her irritation or scolding Nico for walking out or doing anything remotely Maki-like, the redhead simply blinked at her and turned her attention back to the photos.

“Who are these kids?” she asked. Nico strode over and stooped at her side to see which picture she was referring to. “Are… are they yours?” 

Nico fought the urge to giggle. Cocoa, Cocoro, and Cotaro were clearly much too old to be her offspring. An idea lit up in her brain and she settled her face into a grim but determined mask. “Yeah. They are. They look just like him… my late husband, I mean.”

Maki’s eyes widened, then softened sympathetically. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” Incredibly, she actually put a hand on Nico’s shoulder after a brief moment of hesitation and squeezed. “It must be hard for you. Do they live with your sister?” She waved her hand towards the other photo, which showed Nico with a woman who looked just like her. 

At that, Nico couldn’t keep up the facade. She snorted mirthfully, then tossed her head back and let out a full laugh. 

Maki looked panicked. “W-What?” she demanded, her face flushing familiarly. 

“That’s my mom, Maki. And those kids are my siblings. Did you actually think someone could have  _ three _ kids and still stay so sexily thin?” She smirked at Maki’s speechless spluttering and shook her head. “Seriously, you’re on another level of gullible.” 

The pianist began smacking her on the head lightly with an open palm, her face contorted into an expression of extreme mortification. “You asshole! I actually believed you!”

Laughing, Nico caught Maki’s wrist to halt her blows, her fingers wrapping around cool skin. “Maki, a husband is like, not even remotely possible in my future.”

Maki stilled her struggles at the words and locked eyes with Nico, cocking her head. They looked at each other, and with how closely they were standing Nico could feel the other girl’s breath tickling her nose. She caught the scent of Maki’s faint, fruity perfume and shivered a little, despite how warm she suddenly felt. 

“Wait, why?” Maki asked.

Nico’s heart beat faster in her chest, and she found she couldn’t get the words out. When was the last time she needed to come out to someone? She had forgotten how it felt, that feeling of hovering on some precipice and not knowing if it was safe to take the leap. 

She gulped and, realizing she was still holding onto Maki’s wrist, quickly let go and stepped backward, dropping her arms to her sides. Feigning abrupt boredom, she threw herself on the couch and curled into the arm of it. “Not interested,” she yawned finally in reply. 

Maki sat down again too, accepting the response without questioning further, which Nico appreciated. She played idly with the ends of her hair for a few seconds, then spoke again.

“So your siblings… how old are they?”

Nico beamed.  _ This _ was something she could talk about. She leapt up, grabbed the photo, and crashed back into the sofa, this time sitting closer to Maki so they could both look at it together. 

“So that’s Cocoa, she’s the oldest, and then that’s Cocoro, and finally that one’s my little brother, Cotaro…” She never wasted an opportunity to gush about her sisters and brother, who were the smartest, cutest kids in the whole world. To her surprise, Maki listened without complaint, even when she did go a little overboard with the details. 

“You really love them, huh,” the redhead said finally, when Nico paused for breath to drink the dregs of her now-cold tea. A rare smile curved at her lips that made her seem younger, less severe. It made Nico feel self-conscious.

“Well, yeah, they’re my family.” She placed the picture on the coffee table and admired the smiling faces in them. “Them, and my mom. They all believe in me. So this movie… I’ll do anything to make it happen.” Her shoulders sagged as a heaviness settled in her body. More softly, she reiterated, “It has to work.” 

They both stared at the picture, lapsing back into quiet. Nico wondered to herself why she had revealed all of that to Maki, who had stated multiple times that she was only helping with the movie as a favor to Honoka. What kind of person did you have to be to get Maki Nishikino to do favors for you? If Honoka didn’t already have a wife, Nico would have been jealous - No. She had no reason to be jealous. This was getting weird. Shouldn’t they be leaving?

“It will, you know.” Nico’s ears pricked up and she took a moment to comprehend that Maki was talking about the movie. The pianist placed a shy hand on her knee and squeezed lightly in encouragement. Nico, stunned, could not react.

“The movie… it’s good. And your acting is good. I think so, anyway.” She spoke fast, as if trying to force the words out, releasing them before her mouth could catch them. “You really get the character, and you work really hard and - okay, your piano isn’t the best but no one’s expecting it to be and you can definitely finish learning the piece in time and - why are you looking at me like that?”

Nico’s jaw, which had been hanging open, snapped closed with an audible click of her teeth. Out of all the people she could be hearing this from, she never suspected that Maki would be one of them. Sure, the redhead had already been incredibly helpful by shifting her schedule around to accommodate their impromptu practice sessions, but still. What was in this for her?

“Why are you being so nice to me?” she blurted, then winced. She didn’t mean it in a bad way, but the damage was done and Maki pulled her hand back, looking a little miffed and embarrassed. The pianist fiddled with the hem of her skirt and dropped her gaze.

“I don’t know… Because I want to help?”

“Right. But  _ why _ ?”  _ Why _ the hell was she pushing this? Nico screamed at herself in her head to stop letting her mouth run, but it seemed to have a mind of its own.

Maki furrowed her perfectly-penciled eyebrows. “Because, you’re…” She paused and seemed to strain to get the words out. “You’re my friend.” 

The statement hung between them like a pendulum, swinging over to Nico, who was gradually processing its meaning, and then back over to Maki, who was gradually realizing what she had said. They both blushed at the same time.

“R-Right,” Nico finally said. “Thanks. I… I appreciate it.” She offered a small smile, which Maki returned tentatively. Nico wanted to cry or burst into giggles - she wasn’t sure which. Just two months ago they had been at each other’s throats, and now they were sitting in her apartment having a heart-to-heart. It was too crazy to believe. 

Apparently, Maki thought the same, because she got to her feet after a moment, still red in the face. “Let’s go,” she said, more gruffly than usual as if to compensate for the prior warmth she had shown. “The meter’s probably gonna run out soon.” 

Nico grinned to herself. It was almost typical of the pianist to pull back, acting prickly just as they were getting a little closer. She wondered when that habit had stopped being annoying.

“Hey Maki,” she called out softly, on impulse.

The younger girl half-turned to look at her. Standing in the doorframe, slipping on her shoes, she didn’t look quite so out of place as before. 

“What?” 

“You’re my friend, too.” 

As they stepped out of the apartment and Nico locked the door, she reflected that it really was too bad that Maki never got into the movie business. She would have made a terrible actress, to be sure; she couldn’t hide her emotions to save her life.

But the way her face could flush so prettily would have been perfect for the cameras.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very sorry this was late.


	4. Rondo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rondo: an instrumental composition with a principal theme that alternates with one or more contrasting themes.

**i.**

Cool, black and white wood lay soothingly under her fingers. The piano had always been a source of comfort to her, and she lost herself in the music now, letting her hands dance up and down the willing keys.

It had been awhile since Maki Nishikino had thrown herself into playing like this. She had been busy with the movie and her classes, and even before then she hadn’t felt too inspired. Actually, she wasn’t even supposed to be playing now, Nico was due in any minute, but she had taken one look at her piano and before she knew it, she was sitting herself down on the bench with an itch in her fingers.  

So she had given into the urge. She forgot about the clock ticking away up on the wall, she forgot about the laundry she probably should’ve popped into the washer in the morning, and simply played. As she bent over the keys and let her auto-pilot take over, she did some long-awaited thinking.  It was like meditation, really, if meditation involved obsessively going over the details of the past few days as she improvised with a furor unmatched since she had been procrastinating on studying for her pre-med finals back in university. And primarily featured in her thoughts was one Nico Yazawa, budding actress, terrible piano student.

She and Nico had been spending a lot of time together recently. That wasn’t, in itself, unusual. Maki had herself volunteered to give more time to their lessons and show up more often on set, after all. Yes, informing the parents of her (now former) students that she was taking a break from tutoring for “personal reasons” had been reckless and admittedly out of character, but how else was she supposed to support Nico (and of course, Honoka by extension!) to her fullest ability? In the end, she could always find more students. Honoka was paying her decently enough, too, so she’d have some time to work things out later anyway. 

So no, all the extra time together didn’t bother her. But it  _ did _ put Nico in her head a lot more than she would have liked. 

If it were only lesson-planning and thoughts related to the film, Maki would have understood. She was the type to throw herself whole-heartedly into her work, so it would make sense if she spent most of her waking hours these days staying one step ahead of the production schedule. In her free time when she wasn’t on the set or teaching Nico, she was marking up sheet music and taking videos for Nico to study. Nico was about as suited to piano as a fish was suited to living in a desert wasteland, but in a way, Maki enjoyed the challenge of making practice both interesting as well as productive. She could flatter herself by admitting that she had been, for the most part, successful as well.

But there were other things she couldn’t help thinking about when Nico Yazawa crossed her mind, and those were the thoughts that troubled her. 

For example, how Nico was actually an outstanding actress. Maki found herself thinking that a lot lately. She would never say it out loud, but when Nico slipped into her role, she could captivate any audience. Maki kept on having to remind herself that Nico wasn’t  _ actually _ some pretty, pure-hearted, ambitious high school student and that she wasn’t  _ actually _ in a bittersweet, unspoken romantic relationship with the male lead. 

She had to especially remind herself of that last part.

Then there had been the incident at the apartment. Where she had taken a good look at Nico,  _ really _ looked at her, and saw how exhausted she had looked and had been  _ worried _ for her. Nico was an adult, despite her small stature, and she was perfectly capable of making informed decisions about her own physical health. Still, Maki had been privately relieved when the actress reluctantly promised to sleep a little more and cut back on the coffee. Perhaps that was just her former prospective doctor urges, but then again, what was that whole conversation afterwards? The thing about being friends? Maki had replayed their exchange several times in her head and she still couldn’t figure out how she felt about it  _ or _ the way that she felt every inch of her face burn up when Nico had flashed her that oddly adorable smile before they left the apartment.

There were other things too, that kept on surfacing in her mind when she least expected it. Nico’s surprising dedication to her family. The way she always took her time to do her makeup perfectly no matter the occasion. Her ability to keep up everyone’s morale on set even during particularly frustrating takes. That one time she had shown up to practice wearing a ridiculously short skirt (not that Maki had been looking). 

Yes, there were a lot of things that Maki was confused about at the moment. So like a responsible adult, she had decided to vent all her pent-up confusion out by improvising vigorously on her beloved piano. She got so caught up in the ebb and flow of the notes that it took her several seconds to realize that those chimes she was hearing were actually coming from the front door. 

Startled, she halted mid-chord and shot a look at the clock. Six minutes past the hour, which meant that the person standing outside repeatedly tapping on the doorbell could only be Nico Yazawa. 

She scrambled off the piano bench in a hurry, admonishing herself inwardly for losing track of the time. In another moment, she was pulling open her door and there was Nico herself, standing in the hallway with a grin on her face. 

“Finally!” exclaimed the actress, stepping in confidently. She slipped her shoes off as she continued to talk. “Seriously Maki, I was out there for at  _ least _ half an hour.”

Maki’s lips twitched involuntarily at the blatant exaggeration. “Hello to you too,” she said wryly. She let the door swing closed and walked over to the piano, just a step behind her student.

Nico beamed as she turned around and sat on the piano bench. “Hey, you were playing earlier, right? What was it? It sounded  _ soooo _ pretty!”

Maki hesitated at the question, disguising her pause by shuffling through her sheet music. “Just some old song I learned,” she replied. She hadn’t meant to lie, but the words slipped out before she could stop them. In truth, she hadn’t yet told her student that she used to compose and was getting back into it recently, mostly because the subject had never come up. Discussing it (and everything tied to it) now after they had known each other for so long would just be weird.  

Nico looked satisfied and didn’t ask for more information, anyway. Instead, her eyes lit up and she leaned in, clearly brimming with excitement. “Cool! Anyway… Did you watch the movies I gave you? They’re some of Nico’s favorites, you know!”

Despite their increasingly busy schedule, Nico had still found time to compile and lend her yet another pile of DVDs. Maki wasn’t even actually completely finished with the original batch, but she had reluctantly accepted them anyway. 

She sighed in exasperation. “No. Yes. I watched some of them.”

“What did you think!?”

“I think… we shouldn’t waste practice time when you only have a few more weeks before the last shoot.” In truth, she had enjoyed them quite a bit. She had gotten into the habit of popping in a DVD before she got into bed and watching until she fell asleep, and while she had never really cared for movies before, she had to concede that the actress had good taste - despite her obvious bias for romantic comedies. 

Nico rolled her eyes and stuck out her tongue, but she did break out her practice books and set them on the stand. She looked up at Maki expectantly then, and when Maki looked back she had to squint just a little bit, because the sun was shining in from the window on that side of the living room and the light caught in Nico’s hair, making her practically glow.

It wasn’t something that Maki would have paid any attention to before, but she did now. And she didn’t know why, but it put a lump in her throat and an itch in her fingers, the kind that made her want to jump onto the keys and play her heart out for hours in her university days. 

But she was a professional and right now, she had a job to do. So she swallowed and shook her head, focusing on the task at hand.

“Let’s do exercise 30.” Nico nodded in acknowledgement and began to play.

As the sound of piano scales filled the room, Maki realized that yet again, her thoughts were occupied with the actress’ presence. There was simply no escape.

One thing was for sure: Nico Yazawa had gotten under her skin.

 

* * *

 

Nico Yazawa was running late. She tapped her foot and hummed impatiently under her breath as the train ground to a halt in front of her. The doors slid open with a puff of air and she rushed on, earning a few dirty looks from the passengers getting off. 

It wasn’t her fault - not really, anyway. She had set her alarm at the proper time, had gotten plenty of rest the night before. She had done everything right! But when she had woken up to the rude beeping of her cellphone (the only tone that could wake her up properly) and stretched out in her small but comfy bed, she had made the teensy mistake of closing her eyes for just a fraction of a second, and before she knew it, 20 minutes had passed. That led to a frantic scramble around her apartment, with Nico grabbing her things and throwing on clothes as fast as possible, stopping only to down a cup of coffee and apply makeup. She was out the door in record time, and now she was here, anxiously checking her phone and wincing every time another minute passed. 

Still, there wasn’t much she could do except wait now that she was on the train. She settled into her seat and pulled up the movie script on her phone. She had already memorized every line - a holdover habit from her theater days - but it was never a bad idea to review. 

The next scene they were going to shoot was filled with drama. The male lead’s actual girlfriend confronts him in the music room about his intimate friendship with the protagonist (Nico), which leads to her telling him to kiss her to prove he still loves her. Unknown to him, the Nico’s character witnesses the whole thing and she flees the scene; the male character realizes his mistake and runs after her. It would be emotionally charged, and Nico fully intended to break out the fake tears she had been practicing.

Nico grinned as she read the scene over again. If the main character had been Maki, she would’ve been less concerned about romance and more angry that a couple was making out over her precious piano. She chuckled over the thought, imagining the offended expression the pianist always pulled whenever Nico made a joke at her expense. Yes, if the protagonist had been based on Maki, the movie would have been hilariously different.

The train stopped at another station, and Nico looked up at the ticker above the doors. Just another three stops. If she rushed, she could still make it in time. To be honest, she normally didn’t care about being on time that much, but last session Maki had threatened to stop watching her movies if she showed up late again. 

“Maki just wants to spend as much time with me as possible, huh?” she had teased, to which the pianist had blushed predictably and told her to shut up. She knew Maki well enough by now to know that the redhead was actually a huge pushover and probably wouldn’t make good on her threat, but there was always the possibility she’d actually meant it. Despite her uptight qualities, stiff mannerisms, and ancient taste in music, Nico had found that you never quite knew when it came to Maki Nishikino.

That was part of the reason why it was so exciting to be with her. 

The train finally reached her stop and Nico hopped off her seat, walking as fast as she could for the turnstiles. She kept an eye on the station clock as she passed her card over the sensor. She’d have to run, but if she was lucky she’d get to the apartment with a minute to spare. She sped up, already thinking about how she would rub it in Maki’s face when she actually showed up  _ early _ . 

By some stroke of luck, the elevator doors were just sliding open when Nico entered the apartment complex. She managed to catch it, and when the only other passenger got off on the fifth floor, she took a moment to smooth down her hair in the elevator mirror. In another ten seconds, she had arrived on Maki’s floor, and she strode down the short hallway, excited to finally gain the upper hand.

She didn’t make it through the door though. And this time, it really  _ wasn’t _ her fault. She was simply stopped dead in her tracks by the most beautiful piano playing she had ever heard. 

Her hand paused midway through reaching for the bell as the sound of the piano reached her ears. Even muffled through the door, it was an exquisite piece, one she had definitely never heard before. Each note flowed effortlessly into the next, a gentle counter melody overlaid against a riveting main theme. There was an urgency to it, as if the pianist was desperately trying to communicate some vast, wordless secret. Nico had learned a lot about music in the past few months, but nothing had prepared her for this. And there was only one person who could possibly be playing.

It occurred to Nico that she never had many opportunities to actually see or hear Maki perform. She would sometimes demonstrate a few measures or play alongside Nico, but besides that one time during the second time they’d ever met each other, she had never played seriously while Nico was present. Now, Nico regretted never asking her to.

She wondered how Maki looked now, how her long, elegant fingers must have been tracing the steps of some unknown dance across the keys. Maybe she had her eyes closed. Maybe her body was swaying along to the music. She wanted badly to know, but she stood there frozen, entranced by the music and unwilling to stop it. 

The spell was broken when her cellphone buzzed in her bag. Nico pulled it out instinctively - a text from Nozomi. Fortuitously timed, because when she checked the time she was shocked to find out that more than five minutes had passed and she was now technically late. She had been standing there like an idiot for so long! Shaking her head in embarrassment, she somewhat reluctantly stowed her phone away and finally rang the doorbell. Steeling herself, she let her lips stretch into her signature, charming grin as the door opened.

“Finally! Seriously Maki, I was out there for at  _ least _ half an hour.”

Maki didn’t comment on her lateness when she walked in, and she didn’t give Nico the name of the song she had been playing. She didn’t tell Nico what she thought of her movies, and she didn’t even crack a smile when Nico was being adorable at her. 

But she did give Nico a long, lingering look as they sat down together at the piano, one that made the actress’ pulse quicken almost imperceptibly. Nico would have given anything to know what the pianist was thinking then, to have any insight into what was going on in her head as they locked eyes in the familiar, sunlit living room.

“Let’s do exercise 30.”

Nico nodded. She flipped the page and rested her fingers on the keys. Almost automatically, she ran through the scales, hardly even hearing the notes as she played them. 

When the lesson ended, she would ask Maki about the movies again. She’d ask about which one she liked the best, even if the redhead hadn’t finished all of them. She’d ask her about what she was planning on doing this weekend, and if she was coming down to the set the next day as well, and if Nico could  _ pretty please _ get a ride?

Things would go back to normal, and she wouldn’t ever again have to think about how - only for a moment - she had thought about dropping everything and just asking Maki to play that song for her one more time. 

 

**ii.**

The same cafe. The same time. The same people.

Maki had to admit: she had missed getting coffee with Hanayo and Rin more than she thought she would. With her busy schedule lately, she had kept on postponing their usual weekly meetups. The two were very understanding, of course, but it was just good to see them after so long. 

“How are you, Maki!” Rin nearly shouted. She waved her hands around enthusiastically, heedless of the dirty looks she was getting from other customers nearby. She looked especially excited to see Maki after all this time, although honestly, that was kind of how she looked all the time anyway. Maki envied her seemingly boundless energy.

“I’m fine,” she replied, amused. She tapped a bit of sugar into her coffee and swirled her spoon in it before taking a careful sip. “I’ve just been busy. Sorry I couldn’t hang out before.”

Hanayo shook her head, dismissing the apology. “It’s okay, we know! The movie, right? Is it almost done?” Her eyes twinkled with curiosity, as they always did when she asked about how filming was going.

Maki nodded. “Two more weeks. Just a few more scenes left, they’re right on track.”

Hanayo seemed relieved. “That’s good! I can’t wait to see it…”

Maki smiled at her wistful expression. “How have you two been?”

Rin jumped in before her girlfriend could answer. “We joined a softball team recently!” she announced proudly, throwing an arm around Hanayo. 

“Oh?” Maki raised her eyebrows sympathetically as she saw Hanayo’s glum expression. The brunette had most definitely been coerced into it. “Sounds fun.” 

Hanayo made eye contact with her and shook her head subtly at the exact same time that, oblivious, Rin nodded vigorously in affirmation. Maki had to stifle a laugh. She had no idea how her two friends could be so different from each other and still be in love, yet anyone could see that they worked well together. Kind of like her and Nico, she supposed.

Rin nuzzled Hanayo affectionately and Hanayo relented, turning her head towards her for a quick kiss. They laced their fingers together and stared into each other’s eyes, clearly lost in their own world. Maki blushed from across the table and bit her lip.

Nope, not like Nico and her in the slightest. 

She ducked her head and checked her phone instinctively, embarrassed that she had accidentally drawn that connection in her head. As if on cue, it buzzed in her hand and the screen lit up. A text message from the devil herself. Sometimes, Nico’s timing was just plain scary. Maki tapped on the notification and was greeted with the sight of the actress’ million-watt smile. Nico was wearing dark-tinted sunglasses and peering over them, winking with one hand held up in her signature pose. In the background, Nozomi was flashing a peace sign. From the picture, it looked like they were also at a coffee shop.

“Exclusive selfie for grumpy, lonely Maki! Bet u wish u were here~” read the caption. Maki snorted. Nico had recently taken to sending the occasional selfie to her, usually to show off where she was or who she was with. She claimed that receiving them was a rare and precious gift, and that Maki was obligated to download them all.

Maki made an exception to her rule of not texting while hanging out with others, which she usually considered a little rude, to type out a quick reply back to Nico: “Don’t need it. Say hi to Nozomi for me.” She sent it with an air of satisfaction, imagining the other girl’s inevitable indignation after receiving it. When she was done, she looked up to see both Rin and Hanayo staring at her intensely. 

Rin tugged on Hanayo’s sleeve and cupped a hand against her mouth. “Hanayo, Hanayo, Maki’s smiling at her phone,” she stage-whispered, loud enough for the pianist (and probably the neighboring table’s occupants) to hear her. “Who do you think she’s texting?”

Hanayo shushed her, but even the normally polite brunette couldn’t hold back a grin. Maki flushed and quickly stowed her phone away, ignoring its buzzing in her hand. “It’s just Nico,” she shot back defensively. “And I  _ wasn’t _ smiling.” 

Rin’s eyes only grew larger at the mention of Nico’s name, and Maki immediately knew that she had made a mistake. “Nico, huh?” Rin elbowed her girlfriend conspirationally, winking. “What’d she say?”

“Stop looking at me like that,” Maki bristled. She could feel heat creeping up her neck, although she definitely didn’t have a reason to be embarrassed. Given that they spent so much time together for work already, it was perfectly natural for her to have some communication with Nico outside of practice hours. “She was just being annoying like always.” She aimed her most threateningly glare at the ginger, who threw her arms around Hanayo and wailed theatrically.

“Wah~ Maki’s being so mean!”

Hanayo held her hands up placatingly as Maki opened her mouth to protest again. “We just noticed that you and Nico have been getting a lot closer lately,” she explained carefully. “And that’s nice because Nico would make a good friend.”

“Yeah,” cut in Rin. “A good  _ girl _ fr-” Hanayo clapped a hand over the other girl’s mouth before she could say more and smiled anxiously over at Maki again. 

Maki frowned back at her, displeased. “I  _ don’t _ like her that way,” she insisted, crossing her arms, and Hanayo nodded up and down hurriedly.

“We know!”

“But you  _ do _ like her, right?” Rin dodged out of Hanayo’s grasp and managed to get the words out, beaming as she did. Maki only glowered at her, refusing to rise to the bait by answering. Sure she liked Nico, as a student (and okay, as a friend too), but there was no reason to continue justifying herself to Rin. 

Across the booth, Hanayo’s phone buzzed in her purse. The girl dug it out and tapped a few times while Rin watched over her shoulder with interest.

“Oh, Nico sent me a text, too!” she exclaimed, lighting up.

Maki blinked, surprised. “Wait, why do you have her number?” she asked, caught off-guard by this new information. She hadn’t known that the two were on such good terms. 

“She gave it to me the last time I visited the set with you,” replied Hanayo, her thumbs gliding over her touchscreen. “She wanted to give me the details on some movie festivals coming up. She’s so nice!”

Maki watched as Hanayo looked down at her phone, typing out a message happily. She had been startled to learn they were now such good friends, especially since Hanayo was usually rather reticent and found meeting new people difficult, but in hindsight that was just typical of Nico. She would get closer and closer, bugging you all the time, and before you realized it, she was sending you selfies and texting you about mundane things in her life every day. That persistent, dogged charisma was what made her good at what she did, Maki supposed. Nico had, if nothing else, a way of drawing people in.

Hanayo glanced up from her phone suddenly, her eyes sparkling with a look of uncharacteristic mischief. “Nico says she sent you a selfie? We should send her one too! With all of us in it!”

Maki opened her mouth to protest, but Rin’s cheer of agreement drowned her out. Before she knew it, the two had crowded in on her side of the table and Hanayo was stretching out an arm to fit all of them into her phone’s front-facing camera.

“Say cheese!” called out Hanayo. Rin held up her fingers in a ‘peace’ sign. Maki knew instinctively that if this photo was sent to Nico, she’d never hear the end of it. Nico would probably make some weird comment, or complain about how Maki hadn’t invited her, or say any number of things that only Nico would whine about. Honestly, Maki was getting tired just thinking about it already. It wasn’t going to be pleasant at  _ all _ .

Despite all that, however, Maki found her lips pulling up into a smile anyway. 

 

* * *

 

 

“And… Sent.” Nico tapped the button and sat back in her seat smugly, watching the message load and appear on her screen. It was a great photo; she, being the master selfie artist she was, captured the sophisticated ambience of the cafe without letting it dominate the scene. Nozomi was positioned just prominently enough to stand out in the background while still not overshadowing her own cute self. Add a filter or two and some sparkly emojis and there it was: a perfect selfie. 

Across the table, Nozomi stirred her drink idly with her straw, her chin cupped in one hand. She smirked at Nico and asked, “To Maki? Wow, you two sure are close.”

Nico chose to ignore her best friend’s suggestive eyebrow waggle. “Please,” she scoffed, “Maki  _ wishes _ . Besides, I see her like, every day. It’d be weird if we weren’t kinda friends at least.” Granted, their first meeting had been wracked with disaster, but since then they had both matured quite a bit. They were both grown adults, after all!

Nozomi grinned more widely. “You don’t send  _ me _ selfies every day, Nicocchi. Aren’t we friends?”

Nico, prepared for this totally unwarranted attack, had an answer ready. “I just want Maki to know how good my life is,” she explained slowly. Honestly, it should’ve been obvious to Nozomi, but hey, Nico wasn’t beyond helping out her slower-witted acquaintences. “Poor Maki’s always holed up in her apartment with her dumb piano; I’m just showing her that normal people get out of the house once in awhile.” She took a sip of her coffee (two milks, two sugars) and sat back for dramatic effect.

Nozomi, as rude as ever, swiped on her phone a few times without bothering to look up. “We-e-ll, according to her Facebook, I guess she’s taken your advice to heart.”

Nico nearly choked on her coffee. Spluttering, she set the cup down hurriedly. “What? You’re friends with her on Facebook?”

Nozomi raised one eyebrow. “You’re not?”

“No, she won’t accept my-” The actress shook her head and returned to the subject at hand. She stretched an arm across the table. “Let me see!”

Infuriatingly, her agent held the phone out of reach, look decidedly mischievous. “Not so fast, Niccochi. Why do you want her Facebook so badly? I thought you two were just friends?”

“Yeah we’re  _ friends _ , so I should be her Facebook  _ friend _ too!” Nico calculated that her arm length (appropriately petite and cute) was no match for Nozomi’s freakishly long range and sat down in a huff before she could embarrass herself further. “Come  _ on _ , Nozomi. Don’t be a dick.”

Nozomi hummed noncommittally and then relented, reaching out to show Nico the screen. “Looks like she checked into a coffee shop with Rin and Hanayo about 30 minutes ago.”

Nico snatched the phone from Nozomi, who relinquished it gracefully with a grin, and took a closer look at the post. Rin had tagged the pianist in her post, presumably to knock a few cents off her order, so technically Maki hadn’t made checked in herself. With how stupidly rich she was, she probably didn’t need the discount.

Nico scrolled down further to view the rest of Maki’s profile. It was, to no surprise, fairly empty. Maki was way too boring to build a proper social media account. There was an occasional location share for when she was traveling, a bunch of birthday wishes from her friends, and a couple of major milestone posts marking things like her high school and university graduations. Her privacy settings, Nico noticed, were turned up to the highest settings; Nico couldn’t even view her friends list to judge how many people she knew. One promising-looking YouTube link from several years ago led to a private video, which was mildly intriguing but didn’t shed much further light on Maki’s life.

“Done stalking yet, Nicocchi?” Nozomi sounded more amused than reproachful. 

Nico shook her head in response. She still had some photo albums to go through. “Almost! How’d you get her to friend you, anyway? Do you have dirt on her or something?”

“How rude. I simply asked her the last time we met during filming and she agreed, for the sake of communicating our schedules.”

Nico had a tough time believing that, but then again, it  _ did _ sound just like Maki to give everyone but poor, little Nico a free pass. The injustice of it all! She made a mental note to bug Maki harder about adding her later. She flicked through a few photos that others had tagged Maki in, including a few from Director Honoka, which made sense since they had gone to the same university together. Maki didn’t look much different in them than she did now, though her hair was a little longer back then.

Nico’s eyes were drawn in particular to one picture dated three years ago. In it, Maki’s red hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail. She was half-squinting into the camera, her hand up to block out the sun, her mouth half-opened in a stray laugh. She seemed to be wearing a white labcoat.

“Oh yeah, that’s her best one probably,” commented Nozomi. The agent was leaning over the table, looking at the screen upside-down as Nico continued to browse. “Want me to send it to you later?”

Nico fumbled with the phone, nearly dropping it, and instinctively held it back out to the agent. “Um, no? Why would I need something like that?” 

Nozomi accepted the cellphone back, smiling sweetly. “It’s okay to say you have a crush on her, you know. It isn’t a crime.” 

Nico scoffed, even as she felt the blood rush to her cheeks. “No idea what you’re talking about, Nozomi. Like um sure, Maki might be  _ kinda _ hot, and she’s good at piano and she’s rich and pretty or whatever  _ but _ ,” Nico jabbed a finger in the air for emphasis, “her personality still  _ sucks _ . Stuffy, pretentious, no sense of humor? She’d be a nightmare to date. Plus, she’s mean.”

“Sounds like you’ve given it a lot of thought.”

“Yeah. Wait, no!” Nico glared at Nozomi, who was sipping at her tea innocently. “Stop trying to make this a thing! Because it’s not!” She was about to elaborate further, just so Nozomi would stop grinning at her like a maniac, when they both heard a phone buzz.

Nico cocked her head to one side. “Yours?” When Nozomi said no, the actress dug into her purse. “Oh cool, I got a text from Hanayo.” She and Hanayo had exchanged numbers awhile back and occasionally messaged each other about movies. She was quite well-versed in a variety of directors and actors, and their tastes often overlapped. Nico was fairly sure that she was dissatisfied with her job, and she was determined to offer Hanayo a place on the crew of her next movie - after her current project became a roaring success that catapulted her to the spotlight, of course.

“Met up with Maki. Hope everything’s going well with the movie! Good luck from me and Rin!” read the message preview, which also indicated that a photo was attached. Nico tapped on the notification. Upon seeing the picture, she immediately froze.

“My, my, Nicocchi,” drawled Nozomi from the other side of the booth. “That’s a big smile you’ve got there. Something good happen?”

Nico mustered her best straight face and stowed her phone away, though she knew that she wasn’t completely successful. She couldn’t help it. She had been caught off-guard. 

Later that night, in the privacy of her own room and safe from any best friends with a much larger chest than any one person had a right to, Nico looked at the picture again. Rin and Hanayo were grinning from either side of Maki, who was squished uncomfortably close between them. Her cheeks were flushed and, at a glance, she looked both angry and annoyed, like she had in no way consented to having her photo taken and wanted everyone to know it. She glared directly into the camera, as if staring right back at the viewer. Beneath her pronounced scowl though, was a barely suppressed grin. 

She looked the happiest Nico had ever seen her. 

Nico’s thumb hovered uncertainly over the screen for a moment. Then, shrugging, she saved the picture to her SD card. As an extra measure, she downloaded some other random images to cover it up, just in case Nozomi got nosy and poked around. It was a bit dangerous, and she’d never get any peace if Nozomi discovered it, but Nico was willing to take that chance.

After all, it wasn’t every day that she could see an expression like that on Maki’s face.

 

**iii.**

Maki paced in irritation down the hallway, her nice but sensible flats sending echoes up the walls. Lunchtime was nearly over, and Nico was nowhere to be found. She should’ve known better than to let the actress slip off for a “quick bathroom break,” but she had naively assumed that Nico would recognize the importance of practice at this point, especially when they had only a few days before the final piano scene. True, they were well on schedule, but it was never a bad idea to practice, especially because Honoka always wanted to do these shoots in a single, long take.

She had checked with Honoka to make sure Nico wasn’t with her, and Nozomi had simply shrugged her shoulders and smirked suggestively when Maki had approached her. She wasn’t in the bathroom, and she sure as hell wasn’t in the music room, so that only left one place that Maki hadn’t yet checked.

Lacking a proper dressing room, the crew had converted one of the unused classrooms in the school into a makeshift space for the female actresses to get dressed and hang out. It had heavy curtains draped over the windows to block out the sun (as well as any prying eyes), and as a result, it was dimly lit and not much good for anything but storing personal effects. There was  _ one _ certain star who wasn’t above stealing off to the room when she wanted to avoid practicing piano, however…

Maki threw open the door and was gratified with the sight of a small figure hunched over one of the few remaining desks towards the back of the room, just as she had suspected. Rolling her eyes, she strode over quickly, ready to give the actress a piece of her mind.

“Nico-”

She pulled up short and the rest of her words caught in her throat. 

Nico was slumped over the wood with her head resting in her arms, clearly fast asleep. Her mouth hung open slackly, a thin line of drool at the corner of her lips. Maki barging in hadn’t seemed to have disturbed her in the slightest; in the quiet of the dressing room, the pianist could hear her light breathing as she snoozed on, oblivious to the world. 

The rush of warmth and sympathy that welled up in Maki’s chest took her by complete surprise. She approached cautiously, half-expecting Nico to leap up any minute and flash that absurd smile at her. Even as she got closer, however, the other girl remained fast asleep, her brow furrowed in restless slumber. She waved a hand in front of her face for good measure, and relaxed when she got no response.

“Geez,” she muttered under her breath reproachfully. “Didn’t I tell you to sleep earlier at night?” Still, she couldn’t help but look fondly at Nico’s sleeping figure. Not because it was cute or anything. Just because it wasn’t often she could see such a vulnerable expression on her student’s face. She almost thought about taking out her phone to snap a picture, if only she could use it to make fun of Nico later. 

Somehow, though, she couldn’t make herself tear her eyes away from the girl before her. She felt rooted in place, continuing to stare for way longer than any sane person would have. Seriously, it was probably getting creepy. And her hand, reaching out without thinking to brush lightly against Nico’s cheek?  _ Definitely _ creepy.

The actress’s skin was warm against the back of her trembling fingers. Maki let her thumb glide over those delicate cheekbones and found herself wishing, not for the first time, that she could wipe the exhaustion away from Nico’s countenance. She really did push herself harder than she should, despite appearances. She was far more hardworking than Maki could have ever expected her to be.

And Nico was far less annoying when she was quiet like this, looking so peaceful that Maki had half a mind to take a snooze at the desk next to her, which was silly because Maki was an  _ adult _ who didn’t require naps at her age. The pure innocence and sweetness of Nico’s sleeping figure were also troubling, because they made Maki want to do dumb things like stroke her hair (which she was doing now) or press a kiss to her forehead. 

No. That was going too far.

Maki jerked her hand back, forcing herself out of her reverie. She backpedaled a bit, putting some distance between her and Nico. She needed to get a grip. All this time with Nico was seriously getting to her head in ways she didn’t want to think about. She should have just woken up the actress immediately, and in fact, that was what she planned to do now.

Instead, though, she found herself casting about for a stray blanket, settling for a thick piece of fabric left over from some costume crew member’s abandoned side project. She draped it over Nico’s shoulders as gently as she could, and then backed away. If Nico was so tired, then she’d be no good on the piano anyway. Maybe it  _ was _ better to let her rest. 

Maki took one more look over her shoulder as she exited the classroom turned dressing room. The scene burned in her mind: a darkened classroom, a sleeping girl, silence. 

Nico was right about one thing, Maki realized.

She had been born for the movie screen.

 

* * *

 

Nico  _ had _ actually been asleep. She had only meant to duck into the dressing room for a little bit to grab some breath mints from her bag. The wooden desk had looked oddly inviting, and when she sat down in it and put her head on the table, it was all over for her. Before she knew it, she had drifted off.

The sound of the door slamming open prodded her out of a surprisingly deep slumber. In a groggy half-daze, still waking up, she remained in the same position as someone approached. Maybe if she just stayed like that, whoever it was would leave her alone.

No such luck. A familiar, pretty voice reached her ears.

“Geez. Didn’t I tell you to sleep earlier at night?”

More awake now, Nico suppressed a grin. Here was Maki, about to wake the princess up with a kiss - or, more likely, a rough shake of her shoulder. The actress immediately resolved to give the girl a scare as soon as she did. 

But the hand on her shoulder never came. A long silence followed, so long that Nico wondered if the redhead had snuck out somehow without her hearing it. She was about to crack open an eyelid when suddenly, she felt something tickling at her right cheek. 

Nico had to actively force her muscles not to clench. Unless she was mistaken (and she seldom was), Maki was  _ stroking her face _ . 

Her soft, pianist fingers traced a tentative circle over her cheekbone, ending close to her jawline. It would’ve been kind of nice, if Nico’s thoughts weren’t racing at a million miles per second. What the hell was Maki doing? She considered jumping up like she had originally planned to do, but the timing was all wrong, and she couldn’t just interrupt, not while Maki’s hand was brushing against her ear. Not while Maki was playing with the ends of her hair in a way that was actually quite soothing. And not while the pianist was putting her hand on her back now, as if steadying herself to lean in.

Nico’s mind went blank. She couldn’t -  _ wouldn’t _ \- imagine what Maki was about to do next. She just concentrated on keeping her breathing steady even as her heartbeat quickened.

Then, Maki stepped away.

The hand lifted from her back. She heard the pianist’s shoes scuff against the floor as she shuffled off for a moment, then came back. A warm weight that could only be a blanket of some sort was draped over her shoulders and tucked in with an awkward care that was almost endearing. After a few beats, the other girl headed for the exit.

Nico waited until she heard the sound of the door sliding closed. She waited to hear the retreating footsteps, and then waited some more until it was absolutely quiet.

Only then did she sit up, her cheeks burning furiously. She was so thrown by what had just happened that she didn’t even notice the blanket (actually a large cut of leftover fabric) sliding to the floor.

“What the hell,” she whispered into the muted darkness, her voice sounding unnaturally loud in the empty classroom. She didn’t even know where to begin processing the past three minutes. How was she supposed to react when Maki, the same Maki who had once hated actors and was horribly uptight and had never once expressed appreciation of Nico’s angelic presence, had nearly -

Nico shook her head, not daring to finish the thought. She shouldn’t jump to conclusions. She hadn’t had her eyes open, so she couldn’t have any idea about what Maki was thinking about when she was hovering above her. Maybe there was a perfectly reasonable explanation for it. Maybe she had just been trying to snap a photo of Nico’s cute, sleeping face. Who wouldn’t be tempted to, in Maki’s situation? 

Even as she tried to rationalize Maki’s actions, though, she knew her theories rang hollow. She passed a hand over her face, hoping to rub away some of the heat from her cheeks. She only had a few minutes until break was over, and she didn’t want to head back to the set looking as flustered as she felt. 

Nico took a deep breath and, with some difficulty, regained her composure. She snapped open the pocket mirror she always carried around with her and was satisfied with what she saw. As she made her way out the door, she decided that two things were off-limits for thinking about in the next few hours that she'd be on set.

One: Maki Nishikino had almost kissed her.

Two: Nico wished that she had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No excuses for how horribly late this is. All bets are off, the next chapter is gonna take like twenty months, and all it's going to be is the phrase "I love NicoMaki" repeated eighty times in a row.


	5. Nocturne

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nocturne: a musical composition that is inspired by, or evocative of, the night.

**i.**

“So you’re telling me that you thought Santa was real until  _ high school _ ?”

Maki scowled into the cool air. “Look, my dad made it really convincing okay?” But Nico’s laughter floated over from her right and she covered her mouth with one hand to hide her own sheepish smile. She gazed up at the familiar night sky, her eyes tracing the same paths they always did as she sought out constellations. Her back ached from the hardness of the ground, even with the thick picnic blanket she had brought, but it was a good, comforting ache that she knew well.

Maki wasn’t sure what they were doing up here on the roof of her apartment building in the late evening, instead of downstairs rehearsing like they should have been. An hour ago they  _ had _ been at the piano like usual; it was a Sunday, but Nico had insisted on coming over to get some practice in before filming tomorrow. After a long 8 weeks, they were finally at the end of production and were preparing to shoot the final scene. Barring any potential retakes, it’d be the last time they’d have to go to set - and the last time Nico would probably ever have to touch a piano. 

Despite the fact that Nico had wanted to come over, though, with only one night left, there was admittedly little they could do that would improve her playing beyond the level it was already at. Maki was reduced to nitpicking or simply listening to the actress replay the same song over and over again, which was wearisome even to her. So when Nico groaned out a typical, “Cut me some slack, Maki!”, Maki had surprised them both by saying, “Okay.”

Her student had regarded her warily, as if it had been too good to be true. “Wait, really?”

Maki had nodded. “We can’t do much more in a single night. It might even be better if you relax a little so you don’t psych yourself out tomorrow.” 

Her heart had, strangely enough, stuttered a little when Nico’s eyes lit up as she leaned in eagerly. “What’re we gonna do instead? Oh I know, we should totally watch  _ La La Land _ , it's like,  _ so _ good -”

An image had flashed through Maki’s mind, then, of them sitting together on the couch viewing another one of those cheesy and yet somehow well-paced and well-filmed romantic comedies that Nico seemed to favor. A confusing twist in her gut at the thought made her shut down the idea immediately. “Absolutely not.” A half-second later, the guilt trickled in as Nico pulled a disappointed face.

“Fine,” the actress had huffed. “I’ll just go home then. Nico needs her beauty sleep anyway!” 

And that was when Maki had impulsively reached out and grabbed her wrist to stop her from packing away her things. 

“Come on,” she had said, conscious of Nico’s pulse erratic beneath her thumb. “Let me show you something.” And she had found herself leading Nico to the elevator, grabbing the blankets she always stowed in the cupboard near the door on the way out. 

The next thing she knew, they were sprawled on the building’s rooftop, which up until now had been Maki’s  _ private _ spot, for relaxation and meditation in the form of stargazing. She didn’t know why she had brought Nico up here, didn’t even think about it until they were already in the elevator, and then it had been too late to turn back. She supposed she didn’t really want to stop, anyway; with her busy schedule, she hadn’t had much time to come up here lately, and they were smack-dab in the middle of meteor shower season. She didn’t want to miss it, even if it did mean sharing the experience with Nico Yazawa. 

“Okay, your turn,” Nico said finally, long after Maki had tuned out her excessive and totally unwarranted laughter. Her parents had gone through great lengths to keep up the illusion of Santa. How was it her fault that she had been fooled for so long?

Maki sighed heavily. She had just wanted to do some stargazing - it was an unusually clear night and the weather was just perfect - but Nico had somehow roped her into a juvenile game of Truth or Dare, which had basically devolved into Truth or Truth because they were both too lazy to think of any dares. She really thought that Nico would’ve been quiet for once too, because the actress had let out an awed “whooaaaaaa” when they first got to the roof. Her eyes had gotten so wide and when Maki saw her big, open-mouthed grin, which made her look just like a child, she had been momentarily glad that had decided to bring Nico up here.

“Um, I don’t know.” She wondered yet again why she was still going along with the game. “What’s your favorite animal?”

“Bunnies. Jesus Christ, Maki, your questions are nearly as boring as you are.”

Maki rolled her eyes. “Like yours are any better?” Nico had spent the first two rounds quizzing Maki about celebrities she didn’t know and then actually seemed offended on their behalf when Maki told her as much. 

“Look, just because Maki doesn’t - Oh look! Another one!” A tiny shooting star flashed briefly across the northern part of the sky. Maki had long ceased being excited about the little ones, but Nico gasped at each one she noticed. Maki got the feeling that Nico didn’t stargaze very much, which was funny since being so short she must have to look up a lot anyway. 

They both fell silent. Nico was presumably combing the sky for more shooting stars. Maki tried to relax and let herself fall back into her usual routine, starting at Pisces and making her way from East to West. She definitely wasn’t thinking at all about how she and Nico were lying side by side, one of the blankets draped over them because despite how hot it had been lately the nights were still decently cool and Nico had complained about being cold. The fact that she was oddly nervous for no concrete reason in particular didn’t even register in her head. 

“This is nice,” Nico said suddenly. Maki turned her head towards the actress in confusion and the other girl hastened to add, “Looking at the stars, I mean. Do you do this a lot?” 

Maki nodded reflexively, although Nico’s eyes were still trained on the sky. “Ever since I was a kid, pretty much.” She remembered when her father had given her her first telescope, and how she got in trouble for staying up way past her bedtime looking through it. 

“Hm. Hard to imagine Maki as a kid. You sure you didn’t just come out all piano prodigy and mean teacher?”

The jibe should have annoyed Maki, but it didn’t. Her lips curved upwards instead. “Just the piano prodigy part,” she replied lightly, and they both chuckled. 

Part of Maki knew that things were getting decidedly unprofessional. After the near-miss in the dressing room, she had resolved to be a bit more firm in treating Nico like the client she was. They were friends now, of course, but first and foremost she was a business associate. And business associates didn’t lie back on a blanket together looking up at stars, and they  _ definitely _ didn’t kind of think about how nice it would be to take the other person’s hand and just hold it for awhile. Which, incidentally,  _ never _ crossed Maki’s mind, not once. 

There was a rustling of the blankets as Nico reached out her leg to poke Maki insistently and none too lightly in her right calf. “Your turn, remember? Make it good this time!”

She stretched lazily away to her left, making a half-hearted attempt to avoid the prodding. “My questions are fine. You’re just picky.” She wracked her brains anyway though, if only because she wanted to prove that she  _ could _ ask an interesting question. It shouldn’t be that hard right? She alighted on a potential topic after a moment. Nico had asked her about her childhood; she’d return the favor. “How long have you wanted to be an actress?”

Nico grinned. “Nico’s  _ always _ been a superstar!” she proclaimed, but expanded on it a little when Maki narrowed her eyes at her. 

“I remember exactly when,” the shorter girl mused, turning her gaze back to the stars. Maki looked up, too, letting Nico’s voice wash over her like a tide. “I was four. I was watching TV with my parents. My dad… My dad was still around then. The Oscars were on. Some actress - can’t remember who - walked down the red carpet, and I tried to copy her. My dad got a kick out of it. Said I looked like a real movie star. I knew I wanted to be one then. And when he died a few years later, well, that just made it more important for me to succeed.”

She heard, more than saw, Nico turning to look at her surreptitiously, trying to gauge her reaction. Maki kept her gaze focused upwards, afraid to make eye contact. This was the first time Nico had ever been so open about her past, and she didn’t want to spook her. Maki had been able to piece together through hints (and okay, a bit of asking around) that Nico’s father had passed away while she was still young. She didn’t know the exact details, but there had apparently been an accident. She wanted to say something, to console Nico with promises that the movie would be a hit, but somehow the words wouldn’t leave her lips. 

After a beat, the moment was gone. “Anyway, how about you? Always wanted to punish small, rich children for not practicing scales three hours a day?” Nico’s tone was light and flippant; she clearly wanted to change the subject. 

Maki indulged her. “No, teaching piano wasn’t ever really in the cards for me. I wanted-” She bit her lip, thinking about how difficult it’d be to explain why she wasn’t composing anymore, and altered her response. “My parents wanted me to be a doctor, like them. Take over the hospital.”

“But?”

Maki jerked her shoulders. “Followed along for a little while. Was on the med track on college. But… I don’t know. I got tired of it after awhile.” She furrowed her brow, remembering the all-nighters, the internships, all the sick people. She liked helping others, but it had always been her parents’ dream for her, not her own. “Maybe… Maybe it was selfish, but I just wanted to play music.”

Nico nodded. “Life’s too short to force yourself to do something you don’t like. But are you really gonna just teach piano for the rest of your life?”

Maki considered the question. “What, you don’t think I should?”

Nico was humming skeptically. “Doesn’t really suit you. Not,” she hastened to clarify, as Maki swiveled around to glare at her, “that you’re a bad teacher or anything. But… I don’t know. Wouldn’t you be happier doing more?”

“Like what?” 

Nico seemed to wrack her brain for a moment, but she came up empty. Still, stubbornly she answered, “Something that doesn’t waste your potential!”

Maki barked out a mirthless laugh. “I wasted my potential when I quit med school. According to my parents, anyway. So technically, everything I do is a waste of my potential - ow!”

She cringed away as Nico jabbed her hard in the shoulder. The actress blew out her cheeks in mock anger. 

“You taught me piano, right?” she demanded, pouting a little in a way Maki had once thought was simply annoying. “That’s probably the most important job anyone’s had, ever!”

Maki couldn’t help but grin. “More important than acting?”

“Well, no, of course not. But almost as good,” Nico replied with a dead-serious expression. They locked eyes solemnly, then burst into giggles. 

“I had a lot of fun with this, you know,” Maki said when they finally paused for breath. “I’m glad I took the job.” The confession slipped out easily, despite her full expectation that Nico would gloat. She’d decided that she’d allow it, just this once.

But Nico didn’t gloat. She didn’t puff out her chest in undeserved pride and rub it in.

She just smiled shyly back at the pianist, a slow, sweet smile that spread across the petite, doll-like expanse of her face. 

“I’m glad you did too,” the actress whispered, and in that moment, Maki stopped breathing. They gazed at each other, dark eyes meeting light brown ones, while above their heads, the clearest night Tokyo ever had twinkled unnoticed. 

Then Nico coughed and looked away, and the moment was broken. 

“But why’re you acting like we’re saying goodbye forever?” she asked, her voice back to normal once more. “You’re totally coming to the production after-party, right? And the first screening when they’re done with post? You’re not free of me yet, Maki, not after the hell you put me through-”

Maki reflected, even as she told the actress she’d rather swallow a bucket of nails than spend a single minute longer with her, that this was not how business associates should be acting. Confiding in each other, joking around, brushing shoulders - all horribly unprofessional. But maybe, just this once, it was alright.

Maybe, just this once, Maki could look at Nico’s lips and not immediately suppress all thoughts of wondering what would happen if she just leaned in a little closer. 

The two talked long into the warm, dark night.

 

**ii.**

Nico slid over another drink across the smooth surface of the bar. Maki accepted it with a nod, and held it out so they could clink glasses.

“Bottoms up,” the actress joked, then frowned at the beverage in Maki’s hand. “But I still have no idea how you actually  _ enjoy _ that.” 

Maki curled her arm away protectively. “Bloody Mary’s are  _ good _ ,” she insisted, and took a sip to prove it. This bar made them especially well; Maki appreciated the stick of celery they included. “Besides,” she added, glancing with distaste at Nico’s drink, “You’re one to talk.” 

Nico blinked at her innocently as she popped a cherry into her mouth. “Oh come on, Maki, everyone likes pina coladas.”

“Yeah? Diabetics too?”

Nico just stuck her tongue out in response, which for some reason brought heat to Maki’s cheeks. She turned away quickly on the pretense of taking another sip, though she couldn’t resist stealing a few glances to her side.

Maki had been skeptical when Honoka had announced the location of the wrap-up party. Honestly, she hadn’t planned on coming at all. She wasn’t  _ technically _ part of the crew, and had barely interacted with them aside from nods of acknowledgement and enquiring about Nico’s location. The dress code was also “semi-formal,” which sounded like a pain; apparently, PR was bent on getting some photos for social media and everyone had to look presentable. The whole thing reminded her of the unreasonably stuffy family parties her parents forced her to go to annually for the sake of keeping up appearances. 

But Honoka wouldn’t stop bothering her about it, and Nico had been downright offended. She also got the feeling that sweet, well-mannered Hanayo might actually murder her if she passed up on an opportunity to party with real filmmakers. So despite her misgivings, she had dug through her closet and found that one dress she hadn’t worn in awhile - the night-blue one that sparkled just a little bit towards the bottom, the one that clung to her torso in a flattering manner. It looked good on her, she knew from experience, which meant certain annoying actresses of laughably small stature couldn’t give her a hard time on her outfit. Besides, she liked the dress.

She had spent about an hour teasing out her hair, pinning it up and into place so it looked effortless, her red curls brushing at the nape of her neck. Looking in the mirror, she had wondered if she had perhaps gone further than necessary for a “semi-casual” look. But suddenly the cab she’d called had showed up, and then she was on her way. A spot of traffic, a whirlwind of well-dressed people, spotting Honoka briefly but not getting to say hi because as the director she had to make a speech - the first hour passed so quickly that Maki would have trouble later recounting exactly what had happened.

Well, except for one thing. One moment lingered in her mind even now, like the afterimage of some blinding flash of light that refused to fade away, no matter how much she blinked.

It was when Honoka had paused in the middle of greeting everyone. She had beckoned to someone in the crowd, laughing and calling for “the real star of the show” to get up in front with her. A familiar diminutive figure had emerged from the throng, and Maki had gotten a good look at Nico Yazawa for the first time that night.

It wasn’t that Maki hadn’t expected Nico to go all-out. She was an  _ actress _ after all, and an excessively theatrical one, at that. But she hadn’t been prepared the open-backed cocktail dress that clung to her delicate curves and showed off the creamy skin of her shoulder-blades. Nor had she anticipated the slightly curled hair, teased into a flawless ponytail that was such a departure from her typical pigtails, which were cute in their own way despite their childishness. 

On the set, Nico usually was dressed in her character’s school uniform, and off the set she had her own stylish but flamboyant wardrobe. She had never seen the actress in anything else. 

So it was no surprise that Maki had been caught off-guard by  _ this _ Nico, this Nico who, lit under the spotlight and gracefully accepting the applause and cheers from her coworkers, was positively glowing. The pianist had stared long and hard, even as everyone else clinked glasses and toasted together around her.

And now she was here, sitting at the bar next to the star herself, trying not to sneak more peeks by focusing her gaze diligently on the drink before her. This was  _ Nico _ \- sure, dressed up and in the prime of her life Nico, but the same old Nico she always knew, who was as rude and egotistical and childish as she was ambitious, kind, and funny. She had no reason to be feeling so shy.

“Attack!”

Nico leaned over without warning, brushing close, and Maki flinched. She hadn’t been expecting such a move (what with the whole avoiding eye contact thing) and the other girl took advantage of the opportunity and slid Maki’s drink away from her again. She smirked, self-satisfied. 

“Time to see why you like this so much.” Maki held her breath as she watched Nico’s tongue snake out, her lips clamping around the exact same straw that had been in Maki's own mouth just a few seconds before. In another moment, Nico was gagging and quickly shoving the glass away, nearly spilling it. “Oh god.”

Maki caught the glass before it tilted over. “No need to exaggerate,” she said, feigning offense. In truth, she knew that was exactly how Nico would respond. 

“Really, Maki,” the actress insisted, and suddenly she was close again, putting her hand on Maki’s wrist. Maki noticed that her cheeks were flushed from the alcohol. She looked solemnly into the pianist’s eyes, and Maki stared straight back. “Are your taste buds okay? How the hell can you drink that? Is someone making you do this?”

Maki suppressed the urge to snort. She similarly tried to pull a serious face and took Nico’s hand, trying to channel earnestness into her tone. “Actually, my family had a run-in with the mafia and-”

They both couldn’t maintain a straight face for long. Nico giggled and brought her other hand over to clasp over Maki’s and they grinned at each other, so hard that it almost hurt Maki’s lips. A giddy warmth bloomed in her chest.

“There they are!” 

A familiar voice rang out and Honoka near-crashed into the wood of the bar, colliding against it and managing to bounce into the seat next to Nico’s before falling down completely. Maki instinctively jerked her hands away as some of the other staff members fell in alongside them, including a smirking Nozomi and a mildly amused Eli. Beside her, Nico yelped and fruitlessly tried to prevent the director from pressing some sloppy kisses to her cheek. 

“My two favorite people!” yelled Honoka, pulling Maki into a hug as well. The stench of alcohol was heavy upon her old friend’s breath, and Maki wrinkled her nose. Honoka wasn’t much different from usual when she was drunk - just somehow louder and even more energetic. 

“You guys are drinking right?” Honoka demanded. She beckoned at the bartender. “Shots! Shots for everyone!”

Maki winced. “Honoka, are you sure that’s a good i-”

“Shots!”

Nico laughed. “There is  _ no _ stopping her, huh?” She was shouting to make herself heard over the hubbub as around them, the others cheered and passed around shot glasses. Maki just shook her head. She watched as Nico accepted the two shot glasses that Honoka drunkenly handed her. The actress’ eyes twinkled conspirationally, almost dangerously, as she held one out to Maki.

“If you can’t beat ‘em…”

Maki looked around. She saw the crush of people who had all come together to make the movie happen. She saw Honoka, her long-time college friend, grinning at her expectantly. She saw the way everyone seemed drunk - not on alcohol, but on the pure joy of having worked hard and finished something worthwhile. 

And she saw Nico, teeth flashing in a brilliant smile, pride and hope bursting from her chest, glitter upon her eyelashes - beautiful.

Maki took the glass, raising it to her lips, and finished Nico’s sentence for her.

“Join ‘em.”

 

It was an unquantifiable amount of celebratory alcohol later when the party finally started to clear out. Maki’s head was spinning, and she was only vaguely aware of the reassuring warmth pressing against her shoulder. She blinked blearily at her surroundings, trying to orient herself.

Sometime between her third and fourth shot, she had been relocated to a booth further into the bar. Someone (the responsible-looking Kotori, perhaps, who looked like she had barely drank anything all night and was now guiding people out the door), had replaced the cocktail between her hands with a nice, cool glass of water. She drank from it now, knowing that she would thank herself for it in the morning. 

She glanced to her left, now curious about what exactly she was leaning up against, and promptly choked on her drink. So much for the reassuring warmth - Nico was all but passed out on her shoulder, looking less now like some glamorous superstar and more like a freshman at her first sorority party. She frowned at the thought. Hopefully Nico hadn’t actually been so careless when she was younger. 

She shrugged her left arm experimentally, trying to prod Nico into wakefulness. “Nico. Nico, get up.” No answer. She would’ve been concerned, except that she could feel the other girl’s breath blowing hot upon her skin. 

“Wow, she’s really out of it, huh?” A cheerful voice caused Maki to look up. She was met with the sight of Nozomi, looking fresh and unfazed despite the fact that Maki was fairly sure she had seen the agent knock back no less than five shots in a row. The other woman winked as she caught Maki’s eye, then leaned into the booth and started shaking Nico’s shoulder. “Come on, Nicocchi. Time to go home.” 

Nico stirred, but she didn’t move away from Maki, like the pianist had expected. “Don’t wanna,” she slurred vaguely, flapping her hand at Nozomi in a weak shooing gesture. 

Nozomi giggled and caught at her arm, tugging gently. “Your cab’s waiting, Nicocchi. The sooner you get up, the sooner you can go home.”

Nico shook her head more vigorously and, to Maki’s utter shock, wrapped both arms around the pianist’s elbow and clung to her. “No! I wanna stay with Maki!” 

Maki jerked her head up sharply, but Nozomi was already drawing back, a mischievous look on her face. “Oh?” she purred, obviously entertained. She was definitely getting the wrong idea. 

“This isn’t-”

Nozomi cut her off, thankfully choosing to be professional. “As cute as that is, Maki needs to get home too, and you need some rest. Up we go.” 

Despite her entreaties and threats, however, Nico remained stubbornly attached to Maki’s arm. Nozomi, patient as ever, laughed helplessly and straightened up, scanning the room presumably to enlist the help of someone who wasn’t too drunk to get Nico out the door. Maki looked down at the actress, still petulantly holding on with all her might (which wasn’t much), and couldn’t help the fondness she felt. As Nozomi began to scold Nico once more, she cleared her throat.

“It’s fine, Nozomi.” Nozomi stopped short and tilted her head questioningly. Maki just nodded at her. “She can come with me. My penthouse is closer anyway.  _ Don’t _ ,” she added, as Nozomi opened her mouth, “say what you were about to say.”

Nozomi chuckled warmly. “Actually, I was just going to say that’d be a great help. I have to make sure some of the others get home, too.” They both looked across the bar, where the normally cool and collected Director of Public Relations, Eli Ayase, was enthusiastically slurring what sounded like broken Russian at anyone who happened to catch her eye. Now that Maki thought about it, the pretty blonde had matched Nozomi shot for shot.

After some coaxing, they managed to get Nico on her feet. The tiny girl swayed precariously on her heels, never loosening her grip on Maki’s arm, and Maki supported her as they walked over to the waiting taxi. With difficulty, considering that Nico refused to let go of her and Maki herself was still far from sober, they clambered in, and the driver took off once Maki gave him the address. 

Yellow lights flashed by outside, casting a pale glow upon the inside of the car. Maki allowed herself to look down at Nico’s face, still conscious of the alcohol-encouraged warmth radiating from her small body, and found the other girl looking back at her, her gaze curious yet detached. She thought about making some teasing remark about how Nico was acting like a baby, but after some further thought, she just smiled and patted Nico’s hand reassuringly. Nico just sighed and buried her face back into Maki’s shoulder. Maki was just honest enough with herself to admit that it was possibly the cutest thing she’d ever seen.

The ride back to Maki’s apartment only took about twenty minutes, though by the time they arrived Maki was almost wishing that it was longer. After the excitement of the party (and all the liquor that had been consumed), those twenty minutes of just sitting in darkness and quiet allowed her exhaustion to sink in. Plus, it was kind of comfortable, relaxing on the plush leather of the taxi seat, Nico’s weight pressed against her, the smell of the other girl’s perfume sweet in the enclosed space. Maki wouldn’t have minded a few more moments just like that, with the car rumbling beneath her and Nico at her side.

Someone, however, had to be the responsible one. So when they pulled up in front of her building, she managed to pay the cab driver, wake up Nico, and get them both inside and into the elevator with considerable effort.

The actress leaned against the far wall of the elevator as they rode up to the top floor, a grin on her face. Maki frowned. “What’s so funny?”

Nico tittered, her head drooping just a little. “Maki’s taking me home,” she answered in a sing-song voice. “Nico’s sooo happy~”

Despite the alcohol in her system, Maki was chagrined to find that she still had the energy to blush. “You’ve come over multiple days a week for literally, like, four months. Don’t make this weird.”

Nico pouted. “Who’s making it weird? Maki’s the weird one!” A ding sounded as they reached Maki’s floor and Nico pranced out, suddenly showing much finer motor skills than she had less than an hour earlier. The diminutive girl practically burst through the door after Maki unlocked it and pirouetted precariously as the pianist hastened to hang up her coat.

“Be careful!” she scolded as she raced to catch Nico before she fell. “You’re way too drunk for that right now.” She guided Nico over to the living room sofa and sat her down. 

“My hero,” Nico teased. She held onto Maki’s wrist, preventing her from pulling away, and looked up at her brightly. “Hey, hey, what are we gonna do next?” 

Maki furrowed her brow. Her charge was suddenly being difficult. “Um, nothing? You need to drink some water and go to sleep.”

“Boring,” Nico huffed. She tossed her head and looked around. When her eyes lit on the piano, she perked up and turned back to Maki excited. “You should play something for me!”

“What? No. Come on, Nico, aren’t you tired?” Maki glanced up at the clock. It was nearly 2 A.M. “Let’s get you cleaned up. You can sleep in the guest room.” She reached out her hands to pull Nico up.

Nico grasped her forearms for balance and stood, and Maki felt a glimmer of hope that maybe putting Nico to bed wouldn’t be too hard after all, but instead of compliantly following her lead, the little actress pulled her insistently in the direction of the piano.

“One song. You  _ never _ play for me. One song.” Her words were slurred but determined, candid and stubborn. Typical Nico. Maki could clearly see that there would be no convincing her.

“Fine,” She acquiesced reluctantly, allowing herself to be led towards the back of the room. She shook Nico off so she could open up her beloved instrument, then sat down in front of it. “ _ One _ . Then you’re going to sleep.” Nico whooped and slid onto the piano bench beside her, her shoulder brushing against Maki’s own. Maki resisted the urge to scoot down. Drunk Nico sure was  _ clingy _ .

She let her fingers hover over the keys as Nico practically wriggled with anticipation next to her. She wasn’t actually sure what she should play. A classic? Improvise? Part of her wanted to do some drills, just to annoy the girl next to her, but after some thought she decided to play a song they both knew. While she wasn’t  _ drunk _ , she was still far from an optimal state for giving some grand performance anyway. 

The song she defaulted to was a song that Nico knew just as well as she did. They had heard it often, measure by measure at first, then hesitantly all together, then over and over again until they were both almost tired of it. She half-expected Nico to punch her in the shoulder and demand a different tune when she realized that Maki was just playing the final song they had studied for the movie, and the actress did momentarily stiffen, but no admonishment came. Instead, she relaxed her pose and leaned lightly against Maki once more.

So Maki leaned, too. She closed her eyes and let her fingers go through the familiar motions, surrendering to the same emotions she had felt the first time she had played the piece, equal pain and joy, equal hope and doubt. Harsh rain on newly sown seeds. Sunlight, too bright on a still slumbering world. She was two-thirds through the song before she realized the low thrum she felt wasn’t the beating of her own heart but was Nico humming along, more felt than heard. 

The last note faded out. Maki straightened up, embarrassed to have gotten so into the piece, but when she turned to her right, Nico was already staring at her - a hard, searching look. 

“How?” Her voice was barely above a whisper. Maki blinked at her, not understanding the question. The actress shook her head and took Maki’s hand, clutching it in an almost desperate manner. All trace of her former drunkenness seemed to have vanished. “How do you make it sound like that? I’ve practiced that song for weeks. You helped me. I memorized it. And - And it sounds  _ nothing _ like that, Maki.” Her voice was fervent, laced with a sincerity that Maki couldn’t ignore.

Maki blushed. She bit the inside of her cheek, wondering whether this was the right time to finally tell Nico the truth. She took a deep breath to steel herself, then looked the other girl in the eye.

“Nico,” she began. She swallowed, realizing their faces were only inches apart. Nico was gripping her fingers so hard it almost hurt. “I need to tell you someth-”

Nico kissed her.

There was no time to think, no time to pull back or curve in closer. No time to even breathe or process what was happening, really. Except there  _ was _ time, time to notice that Nico’s hands had moved to her shoulders, time to feel how soft her lips were and how her own moved so naturally against them-

A discordant tone rang out from the piano. Maki belatedly registered that, partially out of shock and partially out of an effort to maintain her balance, she had struck her elbow against the keys. They both looked dumbly at the instrument. Nico whipped her head back around, her chest heaving, and Maki saw, for the first time, the hunger and desire in her brown eyes. 

She saw, also, how suddenly afraid the actress looked, how the weight of the situation was sinking in. The hands on her shoulders tightened, as if Nico was about to up and run. And that was one thing Maki would not allow.

Maki kissed her back.

She saw Nico’s eyes widen and she squeezed her own shut, her hands searching for purchase and landing on Nico’s hips to pull her in. This second time, she could pay more attention to the warmth on her lips, the way it spread through the rest of her body as Nico gasped quietly into her mouth. The other girl’s arms looped around Maki’s neck and hugged her tightly, her teeth digging into Maki’s lower lip. Maki groaned, then shuddered as Nico took the opportunity to let her tongue run experimentally against her own. The actress tasted sweet, like fruit, like the cocktails she had been drinking.

Eventually, they had to surface for breath. Maki pulled away first, panting slightly, her heart pounding. She was out of practice; she couldn’t remember the last time she had kissed anyone, let alone so fiercely. She was gratified to see that Nico looked just as dazed, her lips still half-parted and her cheeks flushed. 

“Nico,” she murmured lowly. Her own voice sounded unusually distant, drowned out by the blood rushing in her ears. She slid away, breaking Nico’s hold on her - but only so she could grasp at the pins keeping her hair in place. Nico’s eyes never left her as she tossed her head, letting her red curls fall messily about her face. The heat in the other girl’s expression was exciting. Dangerous. “Come with me.”

She stood, grabbing Nico’s wrist, and for once the actress obediently followed suit without a word. It wasn’t far to her bedroom, but she took it in long strides anyway, a sense of urgency now rising in her. She didn’t know what she was leading them into, she didn’t know what was going to happen, but she knew that whatever it was, she wanted it. Desperately.

They made it through the door before they kissed again, this time no hesitation or surprise, just lips and tongue and a hiss of pain when Nico bit down on her again. The shorter girl’s hands were more sure now, skimming up Maki’s back and fumbling at the zipper of her dress. Maki rolled her shoulders, trying to make it easier for her as she also pulled at the straps on Nico’s dress. It was almost too easy to slip the black fabric off of those slim shoulders, too easy to dip her head down and press her mouth to that delicate collarbone. She sucked at the soft skin and was rewarded with a whimper from Nico that sent a hot pang of arousal shooting down her spine.

They stumbled towards the bed, Nico finally succeeding in unzipping her dress. It had been expensive, and one of Maki’s favorites, but that didn’t cross her mind now as she shimmied out of it and kicked it across the floor. Nico, similarly, didn’t waste a second in shedding her equally nice attire in favor of pushing Maki back against the sheets. Maki groaned at the feeling of Nico’s bare skin shifting against her torso, the full weight of the other girl pressing down comfortingly upon her. 

“I always knew you wanted me,” purred Nico, her breath hot in Maki’s ear. Maki squirmed as Nico’s palms ghosted over her ribs. Without warning, the actress lifted herself up, her knees on either side of Maki’s hips, and Maki got a good look at the gentle swell of her chest and the fine lines of her stomach as she raised her arms to undo her ponytail. Nico was staring at her too, letting her eyes rake up and down to take in her figure, clad only in underwear now. Maki felt the telling heat radiating from Nico’s body, and she couldn’t help but smirk a little. She was glad she had decided to wear a matching bra and panties that night. Maybe, somehow, she had known things would lead to this.

“I could say the same.”

She sat up before Nico could reply and kissed the actress again. They tumbled together, rolling over twice until Maki ended up on top. She braced herself against the mattress, her knee firmly between Nico’s legs, exhilarated by the way the other girl whined as she ground against her. 

Unprofessional. Inappropriate. But hell, the alcohol was still in Maki’s veins and technically her contract was up anyway and the little gasp she heard as she dug her teeth into Nico’s lacy bra was all the reason she needed to continue. She reached around, letting her fingers brush against the soft skin of the actress’ back, and was pleased when she managed to undo the bra clasp in one try. She wasted no time in flinging the offending piece of clothing away and moved her mouth wetly against Nico’s cute, pink left nipple.

“ _ Fuck _ , Maki,” growled Nico, her hands sliding up to tangle into Maki’s red hair, pull her closer. Her grip clenched as Maki bit down, but the faint pinpricks of pain on the pianist’s scalp only made her more aroused. All the desire she had never known, the infatuation with Nico she had never admitted, had morphed into a searing need to touch and taste. 

She looked up at Nico now, thrilling at the look of strained desperation upon her face. “Can I?” she whispered, her fingers already trailing down Nico’s side. She didn’t know what she would do if the other girl said no. Thankfully, Maki could see from the heat in Nico’s bright eyes that she was more than willing. 

“Yes,” Nico said, then added in a shaky voice, “I wanna touch you too.”  Her arms lowered as she released her hold on Maki’s curls, and her palm skimmed past Maki’s stomach to rest upon the waistband of her panties. Maki nodded in response to Nico’s questioning gaze, shifting so that they could both have access to each other. The position was awkward, a mess of tangled limbs and sweat that would almost certainly result in cramps in strange places the next morning. But Maki didn’t care. She didn’t care, because now Nico was dipping her hand into her underwear, closer to where she needed it, and she was doing the same to Nico.

Her fingers met wet resistance as she slid them in, drawing in a sharp breath as Nico’s fingers entered her at the same time. She couldn’t help but close her eyes and rock against them, wobbling on the elbow she had propped herself up with, only moments away from just collapsing entirely.

“Hey,” Nico murmured. Her voice was almost soothing, except for the undercurrent of lust in it. Maki’s eyes fluttered open as she felt Nico reach up and cup her cheek with her unoccupied hand. “Look at me.” Maki couldn’t have looked anywhere else, even if she had wanted to. The sight of Nico - face flushed with pleasure, hair dark against the white sheets - hypnotized her, held her in place. 

Maki remembered what she was doing. She remembered how badly she wanted Nico. She moved her fingers through the thick softness coating them, watching carefully as Nico’s mouth fell open in a wanton moan. Nico was so slick, so ready, and it was all because of her. Maki might have smiled, if it weren’t for Nico’s hand, fluttering against her own sensitive flesh, causing her to yelp involuntarily.

“That’s so  _ good _ ,” hissed Nico, her fingers curling in deeper. Such a simple motion, yet that was all it took for Maki to arch her back in desperation. It was like a fire, spreading from below her belly, threatening to consume her. Maybe it already had. Why else would Maki feel like she was burning, burning, burning?

“More,” she breathed out, and circled the hard nub of Nico’s clit with her thumb to clarify. She felt the girl tense under her, loved the way she writhed and tossed her head. 

The sounds of them moving in tandem filled the dark room. It was a messy, almost uncomfortable position, but they found a rhythm of push and pull that drove Maki crazy. Every time Maki thrust her fingers deeper, Nico cried out; every time the heel of Nico’s hand skimmed against her clit, Maki ground down her hips harder. She could feel pressure building inside her now, like a crescendo in a piece she had never learned to play. 

“Maki,” whimpered Nico, her movements more frantic. “Maki, don’t stop, I’m-” Her eyes squeezed shut, and Maki felt Nico clench around her fingers as she came shudderingly, a high pitched whine falling away from her lips. 

Maki was close too now, her entire body on edge, trembling wildly. “Nico,” she managed to gasp out. “Nico, please.” 

Nico looped an arm around her neck and brought her closer. They kissed sloppily, wetly, and when Nico’s tongue licked into her mouth, Maki’s body went taut. She was in freefall, shaking intensely as she climaxed hard against Nico’s fingers, still inside her. 

At that point, her arm finally gave out and she barely managed to avoid crushing Nico as she fell against the sheets, covered in sweat. They were both panting hard from the exertion and they lay there a moment, riding out the aftershocks. Maki was pretty sure she had  _ never _ come that hard or quickly in her life, although the last time she had sex she had still been in college so admittedly her memory was a little hazy.

Everything was hazy now. She blinked slowly, as if in slow motion, when Nico turned on her side to look at her and reached out. The actress’ hand was wet against her cheek, and she belatedly realized that Nico was using the same hand that had been between her legs just moments before. It made her blush. 

“Wow,” was all Nico said. She had a dazed, half-grin on her face, looking both pleased and shell-shocked all at once. 

Maki nodded and repeated the sentiment. “Wow.”

Nico smiled a little more fully now, as if she was starting to comprehend what had just taken place. “I, uh, I wasn’t…” She trailed off but somehow, Maki understood. 

“I don’t think either of us were expecting that,” she finished primly. The absurdity of the whole night was sinking in, and she had to stifle a hysterical giggle. 

Nico’s throat bobbed up and down as she swallowed. Maki watched and distantly thought about pressing her lips to that pale, delicate skin. “Should we- Should we talk about this?”

This was a side of Nico that Maki didn’t often get a glimpse of. Maybe once, at Nico’s apartment, maybe a second time on the roof. It was less guarded, more awkward - more honest. And it made Maki want to do dumb things.

Maki did the dumb thing and shifted closer, pressing her lips to Nico’s forehead. “Tomorrow. It’s late. You’re drunk. I’m tired.” 

“I’m  _ not _ drunk,” she heard Nico mutter defensively, but Maki was already rolling over to sleep on her more comfortable side. She felt oddly at peace, like something that had confused her endlessly before had snapped suddenly into place. 

She started as Nico slung an arm around her waist and pressed her front hesitantly to her back. The small girl nestled close, her lips moving against the nape of Maki’s neck as she spoke. 

“What are we now?”

A good question, but Maki didn’t have any answers. She reached around to grasp the hand resting at her hip and squeezed gently.

“Tomorrow,” she said again, and this time, she felt Nico relax behind her. She relaxed too, sinking deep into the sheets, into Nico’s embrace. 

The last sound she heard before drifting off to sleep was Nico’s breathing, slow and regular in the dark. 

 

**iii.**

Maki woke with a slight headache and pain in her muscles. She squinted her eyes open, glaring blearily at the sunlight streaming through the window. Did she forget to close the curtains last night? 

She sat up sleepily and yawned. A bad taste lingered in her mouth, probably because she hadn’t brushed her teeth before going to bed. Grimacing, she rubbed at the grit in her eyes; she had forgotten just how draining a night of drinking could be. This was why she hated huge parties like that. What was the point if you got so drunk that couldn’t even remember half of what had happened? She frowned now, trying to recall exactly  _ how _ many drinks she had consumed.

There had been Honoka’s speech. The Bloody Mary she and Nico had squabbled over. Raising a shot glass with a dozen other people in unison - at least twice. That was where things started to get hazy. Her frown grew deeper as she dredged up the fragments of her memory. A glass of water, Nozomi’s sly voice, someone’s head on her shoulder,  at first piano keys under her fingers, and then something softer…

“Oh good, you’re finally awake.”

Maki whipped around. There was Nico, standing in the doorframe, her hair wet, and very naked apart from her underwear and a towel slung over her shoulders. Maki gasped reflexively and quickly averted her eyes, though too late to prevent the image from being burned into her retinas.

Nico shuffled closer. “Nico tried  _ so _ hard to wake Maki up,” she simpered with a chirpiness so affected that Maki could hear the underlying nervousness in it. Good. At least this was awkward for the both of them. “But you didn’t open your eyes even after I said I’d take a hammer to your piano, so I gave up and helped myself to your shower.” Maki heard her pause, pictured her chewing her lip before she added, “I… I hope that’s okay.”

Maki nodded slowly, still curving her neck away to avoid looking directly at the actress. “Of course.” Bits and pieces of the previous night were coming back to her, and she blushed at the recollection of their impromptu tryst. “Unprofessional conduct” didn’t even begin to cover what had happened. If she had been a doctor, she would probably have been on her way to jail right now. 

“Hey.” Nico had circled around the bed until she was standing right next to Maki, her tone a little firmer and more annoyed. “Eyes over here.”

Maki felt an abrupt lurch of panic in her stomach. “C-Could you put on a shirt?” she managed to sputter weakly. Even she could hear how lame she sounded. Mercifully, Nico simply huffed and made her way over to Maki’s wardrobe. 

“I’m borrowing this,” the actress called out, and when Maki looked up, Nico had pulled on one of the big, comfortable faded t-shirts she usually used as sleepwear. The actress did a little spin, checking out the garment and clicking her tongue in displeasure. “It’s not like you haven’t seen me naked already, Maki.” 

“I-” The protest died in her throat as Maki let her eyes flick up and down Nico’s frame. The shirt was too big on her, going halfway down her thighs, making her seem even smaller than usual. Her bare feet splayed awkwardly against the wooden floor, supporting her slender, surprisingly toned legs. Sunlight filtered through her dark hair, still damp from the shower. 

Several words came to mind. Girlish. Soft. 

Pretty.

“Maki? Hello?” Nico gave her a look, part concerned, part complacent, like she  _ knew _ what Maki was hung up on. That was enough for her to forcibly pull herself together. They may have had a messy, drunken bout of hot sex, but she’d be damned if she’d give Nico the satisfaction of teasing her. She coughed and straightened up, gathering the sheets to her chest for a semblance of dignity.

“We should talk. About last night.” A course of action. A good start. Of course, when did Nico ever make things easy? The actress shook her head skeptically.

“Um, no offense Maki, you kinda… look like you got hit by a truck.” Maki thought about the makeup from the party still mostly caking her face and decided Nico had a point. “Maybe you should shower first? Or something?” 

Something about Nico making more sense than usual seemed unfair. Maki wasn’t much of a morning person, and with the events of the previous evening, she was justifiably confused. A lot had happened in a short amount of time, and after a long few years of a great but admittedly uneventful occupation she was out of practice in dealing with immediate stress. Certainly, she had been a model student and had never been in the situation that she was in now, unlike so many of her former peers.

These were all things she wanted to communicate to Nico at this particular moment, but instead of voicing the coherent, rational sentences she had formed in her head, a single, strangled whimper rose from somewhere deep her in chest. She was horrified to find that her lower lip was trembling dangerously.

Nico looked aghast. “Oh my god, Maki, I didn’t mean it like that. You look fine. I mean you don’t, but-”

“Nico, did we make a mistake?” she blurted. Her heart stuttered painfully, and she wished she could take back the question even as she asked it. Nico’s eyes widened in surprise, but Maki was already dropping her gaze, afraid of what she’d say.

“Hey…” Nico ventured closer, and tentatively leaned against the bed. “Can I sit with you?” Maki nodded, but she kept her eyes trained resolutely on her folded knees. The bed sank with Nico’s weight as she crawled up and leaned her back against the headboard. After a long moment (during which Maki devised an elaborate plan to leave the country in the event Nico said yes, they had made a mistake), the actress spoke.

“Look… I never thought we’d be doing something like this,” she began. Out of the corner of her eye, Maki saw that she was playing with her fingers, twisting them together absentmindedly. “Like, come on. We’re total opposites. Maki’s a snobby rich girl who’s never watched a movie in her life, and Nico’s an amazing, famous actress, after all!”

_ That _ made Maki look up, if only so she could glare. Of course Nico would be taking this opportunity to brag about herself. Only, when she finally lifted her head, the other girl was staring back, wide-eyed, uncertainty scrawled all over her face. 

“But, I don’t know.” Nico spoke slowly, as if she was choosing each word with care. “We’ve been working together for a long time. And we know each other a lot better now. And well, last night-” She paused, a tinge of red in her cheeks. “It was nice. Great. For me, I mean.” 

Maki hesitated, then nodded. “Me, too,” she whispered. A shy grin spread across Nico’s features at the admission.

“So how about this.” She scooted closer, looking much more cheerful now, and put her face close to Maki’s, as if sharing a good joke. “You go take a shower, then we get dressed and go out for breakfast and  _ then _ we can talk about… what comes next?”

Maki looked into those shining eyes and felt her heart skip a beat. Like she was some teenaged girl falling in love for the first time again.

“Okay,” she said in a small voice. Nico patted her head, and Maki was too overwhelmed to even resent being treated like a child. She pulled the sheets along with her as she got out of bed to cover herself up, and on her way out, grabbed some clean underwear from her wardrobe. 

Just as she was about to step out the door, Nico called out.

“Oh yeah, Maki?” 

Maki turned, and Nico shot her a honey-sweet grin.

“Your breath stinks.” 

So Maki resolved to take a nice, long shower, spending extra time under the running water to alleviate her headache - and also to keep Nico waiting, just a little bit. It was also the perfect opportunity to think about what she'd say to Nico when she got out. 

She squeezed out some shampoo and lathered it into her hair as she mentally took inventory. Now that she was properly waking up, she could better organize her memories and thoughts. She just needed to be rational for a moment. 

The first thing she recalled was Nico’s breath steamy and wet upon her chest. A  _ very _ irrational bloom of heat shot straight to her groin. Gritting her teeth, she wrenched the shower knob to the left, dousing herself in a much-needed shock of cold water. This was  _ not _ the time. 

The icy stream hitting her back helped her focus. Filming had finished three days ago, she technically she and Nico were no longer tutor and client anymore. That was good, right? That made this…  _ thing _ less awkward than it already was. If she could even call it a thing. Should she? They had both been intoxicated, after all. 

The idea that this might amount to no more than a one-time encounter was unexpectedly painful. Her hands faltered for a moment, remembering Nico’s fingers tracing the same patch of skin she was applying body wash to now. Nico, who (if she was to be believed) was a glamorous actress-to-be who went to parties every month with other famous and beautiful women. 

Maki was far from insecure about her own looks. Plenty of people, both men and women, had asked her out during her college years, although she had turned down almost all of them. Then again, it’s not like she and Nico actually had much in common. In fact, they wouldn’t even have met at all if Honoka’s movie hadn’t happened to be about a pianist. There were more reasons than not to conclude that to Nico, this was little more than a last hurrah, a final romp before she moved onto other projects, never to be heard from again. Oh god, was she even still waiting in the bedroom? What if she was just  _ gone _ ?

Wincing, she eased up on the cold water. As warmth returned to her bones, she thought again about the morning, how soft and unguarded Nico looked coming out of the shower and how unprepared and confused she herself had been. Nico hadn’t seemed embarrassed or regretful, just a little shy. And, Maki reflected as she turned off the water reluctantly and stepped out of the shower to towel off, Nico had stayed. She had even said she wanted to talk about things after Maki freshened up. That was worth something, right?

She remembered how Nico had looked at her, with longing and hunger. The way their fingers had intertwined at the bar, just for a brief moment. The short, breathy gasps she had made when Maki touched her. 

She remembered that Nico had kissed her first. 

When she finally turned off the hair dryer, she didn’t feel quite as anxious as before. At the end of the day, this was Nico Yazawa. And Nico Yazawa was rude, egotistical, and way too obsessed with being cute, but she wouldn’t just  _ leave _ . 

She swept out of the bathroom, her mouth minty fresh from a quick brush, fully intending to make a grand, dignified entrance and erase all memories of her prior timidity. She made it all of two steps down the hall before she collided into Nico.

It was difficult to say who looked more surprised, but between the two of them, Nico definitely looked more guilty. Maki eyed the actress, who had haphazardly pulled on her dress from the previous night, and instantly all her apprehension came rushing back. The other girl shuffled her feet, almost as if she was trying to edge around Maki.

Maki spoke first. “W-Where are you going?” she asked, hating the stutter in her words. Nico started at the question, an expression of distracted discomfort on her small face. 

Nico ran a hand through her hair, which she hadn’t bothered to tie up. “Um. I have to go. Something came up. Sorry.” She tried to edge forward, but Maki shifted her weight automatically to cut her off. 

“Something? What something? Is everything okay?” Why wouldn’t Nico meet her gaze? The certainty she had placed in Nico was fading, replaced with a sense of increasing dread. 

“I just need to go, okay?” There was a hint of impatience in her voice now. She pushed more forcefully against Maki. “I made a mistake-”

“A mistake? But you said-”

“Somebody  _ saw _ , okay?” Nico interrupted suddenly. She looked up and her eyes were wild with animal panic. “While we were leaving. Nozomi called and told me. Somebody saw and took a picture of us getting into a cab together.” 

Maki blinked in confusion; she understood the words, but not their meaning. “I don’t see the problem?”

“The  _ problem _ is that my fans don’t know I’m gay, and I’m playing the lead of a romance movie with a  _ male _ co-star, and  _ this _ picture is in the tabloids!” Nico whipped out her phone and unlocked it, then waved the screen in Maki’s face. 

It was an article on some seedy-looking celebrity gossip website. There was a photo of them from last night, with Nico leaning heavily on Maki as they bundled into the taxi, Maki’s arm around her waist. Some editing had obviously been done to the lighting, making it looking more intimate and close. The headline, written in big, ugly lettering, proclaimed in all caps: “NICO YAZAWA - DRUNKEN BENDER WITH ‘GOOD FRIEND’ - OR SOMETHING MORE?”

“I need to go fix this. Nozomi’s gonna set up a press release, jump on this before it takes off-” She finally managed to slip past Maki, but Maki caught her elbow and pulled her back. 

“Fix?” she echoed, hearing her voice as if from a great distance. It felt like her ears were filled with water. “What is there to fix?”

Nico attempted to shrug her off without much success. “This could screw over my career, Maki. It might even screw over the movie, if people decide that I'm straight enough for the part. This is my first starring role - the last thing I need is a scandal to throw it off.”

Maki faltered, and the actress took the opportunity to sidle away and into the living room. Maki trailed behind her, still reeling from the sudden change in Nico’s demeanor. “Is it really that bad? Can’t you work it out later?” Petulant, childish. But she couldn’t help herself. 

Nico only sighed impatiently as she slipped on her shoes. “You have no idea how the industry works, Maki. I really need to take care of this, okay? I’m sorry.”

“At least let me call you a cab,” Maki murmured helplessly, unable to come up with anything else. She crossed her arms and rubbed at them self-consciously.

Nico already had a hand on the door. Her eyes were focused ahead of her, determined and distant. “It's fine. I did while you were in the shower.” She turned to look back over her shoulder, and when she finally made eye contact with Maki, her face softened a little. “Look, it- it isn’t your fault okay?” For a moment, a trickle of hope entered Maki’s heart. Maybe things weren’t so bad after all, maybe the situation could still be salvaged.

Then Nico’s expression grew grim again. “But I can’t do this. Not right now.” And the actress pivoted before Maki could even respond. She was hardly out the door before her phone was nestled in the crook of her neck, pressed against her ear with one shoulder. “Hey, Nozomi? Yeah, I’m on my way now…” The sound of her bright, clear voice faded as the door swung closed.

Then she was gone.

Maki stood stupidly in the middle of her living room, staring at the spot Nico had been in only seconds ago. The sudden, ringing silence in the wake of her departure echoed off the walls, which had never felt so far apart. 

After awhile, she turned slowly, surveying the empty apartment, the stark white carpet, the coffee table, her beloved piano where just last night Nico had stolen a brief, careless kiss.

Despite the mid-morning sunlight, her apartment had never felt so dark. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so long, sorry this is so late, sorry this is so gay!!!!!!! Thank you for bearing with me! One more chapter!!!!!!!


	6. Rhapsody

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rhapsody: a free instrumental composition in one extended movement, typically one that is emotional in character.

**i.**

Okay, so maybe Nico  _ had _ overreacted, just a little bit.

She hadn’t  _ needed _ to rush out of Maki’s penthouse like that. Even Nozomi had been surprised when she just turned up at the agent’s apartment still wearing the same outfit from the party. And in the end, the whole fiasco was neatly squared away in just a few days. Nozomi coordinated with the rest of the team, and they had managed to spin the whole story into a PR opportunity. They simply explained that the girl in the photo was Nico’s consultant for the upcoming movie, and they simultaneously played up the whole “learning piano in two months” thing. Nico was even asked in for an interview with one of her favorite celebrity gossip publications. 

“We had to practice for  _ hours _ every day,” Nico answered when the journalist had asked just how she had done it. “But Nico did her best! And I think you’ll all be blown away when the movie comes out in just 7 weeks!”

“And those rumors about your relationship with her…?”

Nico had let out a practiced, tinkling laugh. “When you spend that much time with someone, you definitely have to get along with them! And she’s definitely helped me through a lot. We’re good friends.” The words left a sour taste in her mouth, despite the numerous times she had rehearsed them in her head.

“You two sound close,” remarked the interviewer. “It must be great to have a consultant so supportive.”

And all Nico could do was nod and agree.

In truth, they hadn’t talked since Nico fled her apartment last week. Nico had texted her twice, once to ask how she was doing, and once more for a slightly sheepish apology about being so hasty. Maki hadn’t responded, and Nico wasn’t even sure she had gotten the messages; Maki was, of course, exactly the kind of annoying person that had her read receipts turned off. Nico had a feeling, though, that Maki probably  _ had _ received them and just hadn’t bothered replying.

Nico couldn’t really blame her, either. She hadn’t exactly kept her composure when the news broke, and being the only person around, Maki had borne the brunt of her panic. There was a pang of guilt whenever she thought about the pianist’s shocked and hurt expression when they had bumped into each other in the hallway. She had totally looked like she was just trying to sneak out. Not her finest moment.

Still, after more than a week, Nico had hoped to get at least  _ some _ sort of response, or even just an acknowledgement that her texts had been seen. She was starting to worry that Maki might have died or something, with the way she seemed to have totally disappeared off the face of the Earth. She knew, though, that Maki was alive and well. Fine, even, according to Nozomi. The agent had managed to snag a few quotes from her to further back up the story that they were “just friends.”

“It has been a pleasure and privilege to work with Ms. Yazawa,” it read. “She came in without any piano experience and made a lot of progress in just a few short months. I’m glad to call her both a client and a friend.” Nico could almost hear the ice in Maki’s voice when she read the statement. Yeah, she was definitely angry.

“Just call her,” Nozomi had suggested, but was it really that simple? What would she even say? “Sorry, I freaked out and ran away, but everything’s fine now, let’s bone again maybe?” 

At the memory of pressing her fingers into Maki and hearing her moan, she couldn’t repress a grin. She had made Maki Nishikino lose her self-control, and it had felt  _ damn _ good. Nico was slowly realizing that she wanted to do it again, and again, and again - maybe forever. Her uncertainty about the pianist’s silent treatment was wholly separate from the giddy excitement that washed over her whenever she remembered the sensation of their lips touching for the first time. 

With how focused she was on her career, Nico had scarcely had time to date in the past three years. Oh sure, there had been the odd fling once or twice, but the entertainment industry was cruel to potential scandals. And Nico couldn’t afford that while she was still chasing after supporting roles and climbing the ladder. Besides, while Nico often found herself surrounded by gorgeous women in her line of work, actually falling for anyone was a different story. A girl had to have standards, after all! 

The bottom line was, it didn’t necessarily take an impassioned, impromptu night of piano and drunken sex for Nico to wake up to her feelings for Maki, but that had certainly helped. Against all odds, she had fallen for the surly piano tutor, and even crazier, Maki (probably, definitely) liked her back. Even if she was angry at her right now.

All Nico had to do was stop being a pussy and call her. 

She took the leap a few days after the interview had been printed. Sufficient time had passed, the article made her look good, and plus, she just missed Maki. It was strange, after so long, to not be talking to her, let alone seeing her almost every day for hours on end. A few audition offers had come in now that buzz about her role in Honoka’s movie was spreading, so this lull while Nozomi arranged and figured out logistics would be Nico’s only chance in the near future to really speak to Maki. So on a sunny afternoon, she finally curled up into her couch and pressed dial on her cell, feeling more nervous than she had been at her first acting class in college.

The phone rang four, long times. Nico expected it to go to voicemail, and her finger hovered disappointedly over the end button, when suddenly the call connected. 

“Hello?” The voice on the other end was quiet, slightly snobby, and had the quality of dark wine. It was Maki. 

There was a pause as Nico promptly forgot everything she had planned on saying. She gaped at the screen, her stomach twisting confusingly; it had only been a couple weeks since she had last spoken to Maki, but it felt like it had been months.

“Hello?” Maki repeated, and this time Nico managed to snap out of it. She took a deep breath and forced a smile on her face to get herself into the mood.

“Nico-Nico-Nii!” she chirped. 

She winced at the ensuing silence. Okay, maybe not her best opening line.

“What do you want?”

The coolness in Maki’s tone reminded Nico of how the pianist had been during the first few weeks of lessons - distant, detached, clinical. She hesitated, knowing instinctively that this would be a lot harder than she had imagined. 

“I just wanted to check up on you,” she replied, still doing her best to sound upbeat. “How are you doing?” 

“Fine.” Just one word, not even a reciprocal, “How about you?” Nico tried to imagine her face, wondering if that little dip between her furrowed eyebrows had formed, which always happened when Maki was frowning deeply. All she could picture, though, was a dull, lifeless expression, like a statue chiseled from ice. 

She pressed on, trying a different tactic. There  _ had _ to be a way to get Maki to see that this had all been a mistake, that she had simply overreacted and that she still wanted to try. “Did you see the interview?” She had made sure to tell Nozomi to send Maki a copy, just to show her that everything had turned out okay, after all.

For a second, no sound came from the speaker, and Nico worried that the call might have disconnected. Then, “Yeah, I did.” 

“Oh. Good.” Why wasn’t she feeling relief? In fact, Maki’s ambivalent response was only making her more anxious. “Um… so yeah! Then you know. It’s fine. No one found out.”

“That’s great, Nico.” Maki was only slipping further and further away, building walls faster than Nico could imagine. This was all going so wrong, and the actress didn’t know how to stop it. 

“Look, Maki-”

“Filming is over, right?” Maki interrupted her suddenly, catching her by surprise in the middle of her desperate attempt to continue the conversation. She hesitated, bewildered by the abrupt and nonsensical question.

“Uh yeah, that’s why we had the party, remember?” 

“That means you don’t need to practice the pieces anymore.”

“No, I don’t,” Nico agreed slowly. “But-”

“So I’d appreciate it if you didn’t contact me again.” 

The words swung into Nico’s stomach like a club, knocking the air out of her lungs. She actually doubled over, gripping tightly onto her knees with one hand as she struggled to understand.

“What?”

“I’ve fulfilled all my contractual obligations. Your piano scenes won’t need reshooting. The movie’s basically finished.” Nico flinched as Maki listed the facts like she was reading from bullet points. “We don’t have any business with each other anymore.”

Another punch to the gut, but this time Nico had braced herself for it. “Okay, but forget about the movie. How about  _ us _ ? Didn’t you want to talk about- about that night?”

“There’s nothing to discuss.” Maki’s reply was smooth, too smooth, like a sharp knife slipping through skin. “You said it yourself - a mistake. We were drunk. That’s all.” 

“That’s not what I  _ meant _ !” Nico felt frustration mounting in her chest. Maki seemed bent on being purposely obtuse. Conscious that losing her cool would do her no favors, she inhaled deeply and tried a different approach. “Look, I’m sorry about how I acted, I panicked. But- But Maki, I  _ like _ you. I don’t want to lose you. So can we at least  _ talk _ ? Please?”

More silence followed, broken only by the sound of Maki breathing on the other end of the line. Nico allowed herself some hope, because surely by now Maki could tell how earnest she was, right? Surely Maki wouldn’t just brush her off, after all they’d been through?

Finally, the pianist spoke. “I don’t have time,” she said, her tone flat. “And I’m sure you don’t either. We’re both very busy people. So let’s just leave it.” 

“Maki, would you please just-”

“If you’re worried about me talking about your indiscretion,” she added, cutting in roughly, “Nozomi already has my statement, and I don’t intend to speak to any reporters, so you’re safe. Feel free to lose my number.” 

“I don’t  _ want _ to-” Nico was startled by how garbled her words sounded and lifted the phone from her ear. She touched her face incredulously; her cheeks were wet with tears she hadn’t even noticed. Drawing in a shaky breath, she returned to the call, doing her best to muffle a sob. “Maki, you’re being so unfair, if you could just  _ listen _ -”

“It’s been fun, Nico.” For a moment, the other girl’s voice softened, just a little bit, becoming almost inaudible. It was, perhaps, the first note of sincerity from her since the call had begun. Then, just as quickly as it came, the moment passed and Maki grew cold again. “But the movie’s over. And unlike you, I need to go back to reality.”

Hot pain flashed once behind her eyelids as Nico squeezed them shut, trying to stop the tears from falling. A tendril of helpless rage rose up in her throat. Anything would have been better than this; anger, she could have understood, suspicion she could have endured. But this emotionless rejection? This coolness, despite all the hours they had spent together? She had tried to lay her heart bare and Maki had decided to walk all over it. 

“Reality?” she spat, gripping the phone so tightly her knuckles shone white. “Teaching piano and ‘wasting your potential’ is reality?” She would have said anything to get a reaction at this point, to receive any sign that she was still talking to the Maki she knew.

But the girl on the other end of the line didn’t oblige.

“Goodbye, Nico.”

The line went dead.

Nico let the phone slip out of her aching fingers and onto the sofa. Dazed, she leaned back against the cushion, her heart pounding, her head dizzy. 

She knew that would be the last time she ever spoke to Maki Nishikino.

 

**ii.**

“Oh my god, Nico! It’s been  _ forever _ !”

A blur of orange crashed into her and wrapped her in a crushing hug. She was nearly lifted off the ground by the impact, stumbling hard before bracing herself against the pavement. Trust Honoka to be as energetic as ever.

“It’s barely been two months,” she grumbled in response. But the warm welcome was appreciated anyway. She grinned and hugged Honoka back. “Good to see you too.”    
“Almost everyone else is inside! Hanayo and Rin, too. Thanks for inviting them. Do you have any other guests coming?” Honoka looked around the street, as if expecting more people to just suddenly appear. 

Nico shook her head and tugged on Nozomi’s elbow, bringing her closer. “Nico is Nozomi’s date for today!” She fluttered her eyelashes winningly at her best friend.

Nozomi smiled back and patted her hand. “Eli, unfortunately, has some business to attend to, so she couldn’t make it.” According to Nozomi, the two had gotten quite close over the course of the past month and were very casually seeing each other. Not that Nico was jealous about their successful romance or anything. “Shall we go inside?”

Honoka bobbed her head up and down with vigor and bounced to open the theater door. “You’re gonna love it!” she promised as the buttery smell of popcorn drifted towards their direction.

At long last, it was the day of the advanced screening. This had always been part of her extremely detailed and realistic daydreams, the ones that involved her landing an amazing starring role that propelled her to the forefront of the entertainment industry like she so rightly deserved. She had vividly imagined herself sitting in a plush theater seat and watching the Oscar-worthy performance she knew she’d give from the perspective of the audience, thrilling at all the possibilities in her future just before she won every award and broke every box office record. Sure, she had attended one or two other screenings before, but she had always been a background character, someone who said a few trite lines so that the protagonist could finally get it together and advance the story. Today, she’d finally get to bask in the glory of a finished project in which  _ she _ was the star. 

So why wasn’t she feeling happy about it?

Okay, so maybe in her daydreams she had actually managed to give her free VIP tickets to people she cared for, but it wasn’t her fault that her siblings were all in school during the day and her mother was at work. She had  _ tons _ of friends she could’ve invited, but she only had a couple tickets and she couldn’t just single any of them out, right? Really, she should just be glad that she could be sharing this with Rin and Hanayo; Hanayo had just about burst into tears over the phone when Nico invited her. 

The shy but cheery brunette waved enthusiastically now as Nico, Nozomi, and Honoka slid into the seats in the row behind her. “Thank you so much again for inviting us,” she whispered loudly, and next to her, Rin nodded and beamed as well.

“Anytime,” was all Nico had time to say before the lights dimmed and the room grew hushed. Hanayo flashed one more look of adoring appreciation before turning to face the movie screen. She looked more excited than Nico had ever seen her, and Nico couldn’t help but smile. She was glad that she had gotten the chance to meet both Hanayo and Rin; chasing after leading roles didn’t exactly allow a lot of opportunities for making new, close friends.

The smile slipped a little when she remembered that she had met them through Maki.

She settled back into the comfortable leather reclining seat as the movie began. No, she had already promised herself that she wouldn’t mope anymore. Maki had made her decision, and Nico had to admit that in hindsight, it was probably for the best. She had no time for a relationship, not while her career was finally taking off the way she had always dreamed it would. Nozomi had landed her a four-episode gig in an upcoming TV series, and she had a host of potential offers from other projects that needed sifting through. And Nico gladly threw herself into the work, because Nozomi, as talented of an agent as she was, couldn’t handle it all on her own with all the other clients she had - and because it was a good distraction. With how busy she had gotten, she didn’t have time to dwell on Maki Nishikino and the sudden void she had left behind, nor the painful phone call that had made Nico feel like her heart was literally shattering into a million, tiny pieces. 

Sure, it had hurt. But Nico was a grown woman, not some weak-hearted high schooler pining over her first love. It was the easiest thing in the world to pick herself up, brush off the dust, and keep moving forward. As the opening credits appeared on the screen, she didn’t even think about how much she had wanted Maki to be here, next to her, seeing the results of all their hard work and maybe squeezing her hand in the darkened theater. 

Yes, she had no trouble, really, losing herself in the movie. It was actually fantastic, and that wasn’t just her ego talking. Honoka and the post-production team had done an amazing job editing the shots together, capturing the feeling of each moment perfectly. Despite having played the main character, she found herself drawn into the story, quickly getting over the strangeness of rooting for herself. 

“Thank you for everything,” not-Nico said on the screen in a trembling voice. She gave a teary, yet brave smile as she faced her love interest for the last time, on the day just before her big performance. “Don’t come tomorrow, okay?” Nico grinned to herself as she heard a few loud sniffles from the audience, which was mainly composed of film critics and early reviewers. She had spent hours practicing that particular expression in the mirror.

By the time the last shot faded out, there was scarcely a dry eye in the room. Nico could see Hanayo’s shoulders shaking violently with suppressed sobs as Rin patted her on the back. She hadn’t quite noticed it while they were filming, but the movie had surprisingly turned out to be a bit of a tearjerker. A few people clapped as the end credits began to roll.

Nico didn’t think she’d ever get over the excitement of seeing her name right there, next to the name of the main character. Her heart swelled as the credits continued scroll upwards and she saw the names of her colleagues and fellow actors, the ragtag bunch of people who had all come together to make this movie happen. Even seeing Maki’s name listed next to “consultant to Ms. Nico Yazawa” didn’t faze her. It made her lips twitch a little, to see that in the end, despite how little Maki had cared for movies at the beginning, she had in fact helped make one.

She leaned sideways to address Honoka, who was sitting on her right. “That was even better than I expected,” she muttered, cupping a hand over her mouth so that she wouldn’t disturb the people around them. “Thank you so much for having me do this.”

Honoka’s big eyes sparkled, and she made no effort to keep her voice down as she replied, “No, thank  _ you _ , Nico! I knew you were perfect for the role. You were like,  _ wow _ ! Amazing!”

Nico winced as several heads turned to look, then laughed and put a finger to her lips. They both turned their eyes back to the screen. The warm feelings in her chest would probably be enough to power her for the rest of the year. Fondly, she continued to scan the billing for all the names that she could recognize. There was Umi Sonoda, who had been so helpful when Nico was having trouble understanding her character, and there was that one really nice production assistant who was always getting Nico water, and-

The world seemed to grind to a halt. In slow motion, it seemed, she watched as the credits for music scrolled past. For the first time, she was seeing the title and composer for the three pieces she had learned for the movie, and wasn’t it funny that she had never thought to ask about them? Wasn’t it funny, that despite slaving over them note by note for the past several months, she had never bothered to learn who wrote them?

The composer’s name for the first two was unfamiliar. That wasn’t what got her attention. It was gratifying to see “performed by Nico Yazawa” under all three songs as well, but that was hardly important right now. She stared at the credits for the third piece, simply labeled as “Untitled,” as they slowly floated upwards, her eyes fixated on them even as they left the screen.

“Honoka,” she said slowly. Her mouth felt so numb she could barely form the words. “Why does it say Maki wrote that last one?”

Honoka blinked at her. “Didn’t she tell you?” she asked, sounding confused. “I would’ve thought…”

“Must not have come up.” Maki hadn’t even known about the movie before taking her on as a student, if she remembered correctly. So how could she have written something for it?

Luckily, Honoka, who was not exactly known for her indiscretion, was more than forthcoming. “She wrote that for one of my university projects. Well, we didn’t end up using it then, but…”

Nico finally managed to rip her eyes away from the screen so she could look directly at Honoka. She kept her voice calm through practiced control. “Your senior project, right? The one that you ended up taking extra time for?” She thought back to the story Maki had told her when she had driven her home, all those months ago during the first read-through of the movie script. She had nearly forgotten about it until now. 

The worry cleared from Honoka’s face. “So she did tell you!”

“Kind of. Not any details though. What happened?”

The director frowned pensively, chewing on a strand of her hair. “Geez, it was so long ago… Well, back in university, I asked Maki if she could help me, since I needed some extra bodies and she was still doing the whole composing thing.” Composing? Maki had never mentioned composing. “So she got her girlfriend at the time to take on a role and-”

“Her  _ what _ ?” Nico couldn’t stop herself from blurting out. She gripped the armrests and half-pulled herself out of the seat at the revelation. 

Oblivious, Honoka simply nodded, smiling fondly as she reminisced. “Yeah. An actress from another school. They dated for, I dunno, 2 years?”

Two years. Nico’s own relationships back then had scarcely extended beyond half a year, though not for lack of trying. She tried to imagine the Maki she knew, the Maki who curled up protectively at the slightest hint that someone wanted to get closer to her, opening up to someone enough to stay with them for two whole years. “That’s a long time.”

“Well, they were really close. Maki dedicated the song to her and everything.”

For the second time that day, Nico’s world stopped spinning. “T-This song?” she spluttered, pointing at the theater screen despite the fact that the credits were long past the soundtrack section.

“Uh-huh!” Honoka confirmed nonchalantly. “She wanted me to write that in the credits. Super romantic.” Her expression grew sad as she continued, “So after their whole breakup, I didn’t think I should use it… I mean, her girlfriend and her girlfriend’s friend quit the project and everything and Maki wouldn’t stop apologizing even though I told her it was okay. But gosh, it was such a pretty song that-”

“Wait.” Nico put her hands up to halt Honoka’s babbling. She could almost feel the wheels in her head turning as everything finally started to make sense. Maki’s hatred for actors. Why she had a falling out with Honoka in the first place. Even, maybe, why she kept the whole music thing a secret. It was all starting to make the barest amount of sense to Nico, although she had long concluded that Maki Nishikino would  _ never _ make sense. 

She noticed that Honoka was obediently waiting, frozen almost comically in place, and quickly put her arms down. She cleared her throat, determined to ask for clarification. “So you’re saying, Maki was dating this- this actress girl in college. And she was helping you with your film and made music for you and everything. But she and the girl broke up, and that’s why you couldn’t finish your project?”

Honoka nodded, scratching the back of her neck. “Yeah it was pretty bad. Maki wouldn’t speak to anyone for  _ months _ . We kinda fell out of touch after that.”

“Until you took on this film?” prompted Nico. 

Honoka brightened again and explained eagerly. “When Umi approached me with the script, I thought it was just too perfect. I couldn’t  _ resist _ using Maki’s music! And yeah, she was a little mad at first, but she ended up giving the okay, and look how great it turned out!”

Nico slumped back against the seat. “Yeah. Great.” She put her face in her hands, trying to process all the information she had just been given. She shuddered, remembering that night two months ago, when Maki had taken her back to her apartment and played that beautiful song for her, the raw emotion and heartbreak that had dripped from it. She should’ve guessed earlier.

Stupid. She didn’t know who was more stupid, her or Maki.

The lights finally came on, bringing her to her senses. Gingerly, she wiped a stray tear from her eye (allergies, obviously) with the sleeve of her blouse. Taking a deep breath, she sat up and looked out over the audience. They were all moving about, going to the bathroom or discussing the movie they had just watched avidly with their seatmates. In about ten minutes, she’d have to go down there for a short talk panel and smile and be witty and answer a dozen questions about the film. It’d be the jewel in the crown of a perfect day, another realization of the dream she had always been working towards. 

“Where are you going, Nico?” 

Halfway down the aisle already, she whipped around again at Honoka’s innocent question. Hanayo and Rin perked up curiously as well, and Nozomi gave her a calculating, searching look that she knew well. Her agent only gave her that look when she knew Nico was about to do something reckless and dumb. 

“I…” Nico licked her dry lips and tried to think of an appropriate explanation for her behavior. For once in her life, her improvisational skills failed her. “Uh, I need to go do something.” And with that, she fled those quizzical stares, practically leaping down the stairs on her way towards the exit. 

She managed to make it to the lobby before a hand landed on her shoulder and forced her to stop. She pivoted and came face-to-face with Nozomi, who didn’t look even slightly out of breath despite the superhuman speed it had probably taken to catch up. 

“Forgot something, Nicocchi?” she asked sweetly. From her other hand, she dangled a pair of keys. They must’ve slipped out from her pockets when she had vacated her seat. 

Nico snatched at them, but Nozomi was faster, pulling her arm back so that they were just slightly out of reach. “Not so fast. Where are you going? You have an interview, remember? You love interviews.”

“I don’t have time for this, Nozomi,” groaned Nico. She made a half-hearted swipe at the keychain, then huffed and made for the door. “I gotta-”

“See Maki?” Nozomi supplied cheerfully. At Nico’s startled expression, she gave her characteristic, knowing grin. “Honoka has a very loud voice. Anyway, you can’t wait until tomorrow? She’s not going anywhere, you know.”

Nico bit her lip. She knew, rationally, that Nozomi was right. She had gone nearly two months without talking to Maki; she could afford to let it be a little longer. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that if she didn’t go right  _ now _ , she’d regret it for the rest of her life. She needed to ride the urgency while she still could, before logic set in and she came to her senses, while her heart could still outrun her brain. Even now she could feel the fear setting in, the whispering doubt that told her that Maki wouldn’t want to see her. 

She shook her head. “It has to be now.”

Nozomi stared at her, hard, and Nico thrust her chin out and locked eyes with her unflinchingly. After a long moment, Nozomi finally nodded. Without warning, she held out her arm and dropped the keys into Nico’s hands. 

“Go. I’ll cover for you. I’m thinking… sudden diarrhea attack.” 

Nico scoffed. “Movie stars don’t get diarrhea,” she proclaimed indignantly and turned away. As she pushed through the double doors, she threw another peek over her shoulder at her best friend and longest supporter.

“Thank you,” she called out, and Nozomi waved a hand in acknowledgement. 

Her feet hit the pavement and she raced down the street, not even bothering to watch the doors of the movie theater swing shut behind her. One or two journalists who had stepped out for a smoke break tried to catch her eye, but Nico put her head down and just raced past them, throwing out an arm for a taxi.

She had somewhere she needed to be.

 

**iii.**

Despite Nico’s entreaties, the cab driver did  _ not _ “floor it,” but she still ended up outside of Maki’s apartment building in a relatively short amount of time. She thrust some money at the driver, way more than necessary, and slammed the car door, pounding up the steps to the front entrance as fast as her legs could carry her. By the time she had gotten into the elevator, though, the adrenaline in her veins had fizzled out, like an expiring firework. Her racing heart slowed, and the tightness in her chest from the excitement settled deep into her gut instead. 

She watched the floor number climb upwards and realized that she had  _ no _ idea what she was doing here. Would Maki even let her in? Would she listen? What the hell would Nico even say to her? This wasn’t a movie; she wouldn’t magically come up with some grand speech that would make everything okay. She should’ve planned this better, but she just  _ had _ to leave the theater and take care of everything right away, didn’t she? And it was too late to turn back, because the elevator was arriving now, depositing her on Maki’s floor with an ominous  _ ding _ .

She stepped out into the quiet hall, her heels sinking into the rough carpet. The last time she was here, she hadn’t realized that she could have been potentially walking out of Maki’s life forever. Guilt turned over in her stomach as she thought back to how selfish she had been. She had been so focused on protecting her career that she hadn’t even considered how Maki would feel. And she expected to just make things right now?

There was a sense of deja vu as she stood in front of the pianist’s door, her hand hovering over the flat doorbell. She had stood here before like this, many times over the past two months. With wry amusement, she remembered the first real lesson she had here, how she had arrived at Maki’s apartment fully expecting that the other woman had invited her back for the sole purpose of a full-blown fistfight. She had hesitated then, too, wondering what exactly lay in store for her beyond that door. But her resolve had hardened, because she was being challenged, and top idol Nico Yazawa did not run away from challenges. 

Nico Yazawa always fought her fears. And she always won. 

Nico dropped her arm to her side. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady herself. Then, she faced the door firmly and pushed her shoulders back, puffing her chest out. When she felt ready, she raised her hand to the doorbell again. This time, she pressed it.

The seconds that followed were the longest in Nico’s life. She waited nervously, her ears pricked for a sign that Maki was actually home. She was about to lose her nerve when she heard some shuffling from the other side, followed by the sound of the lock clicking. Before she could even blink, the door was pulled open and there was Maki Nishikino, in the flesh.

Nico had fully planned on a normal, polite greeting, but Maki had a way of ruining plans. At the sight of her face, Nico froze completely. 

Who could blame her? It had been two months since she had last seen Maki. She had almost forgotten how pretty the pianist was, with her soft red hair and striking eyes. She was a little thinner than Nico remembered, the gaunt side of slender. She seemed to have gotten paler too, although that only accentuated the porcelain-like quality of her skin. Standing in the doorway in comfortable indoor wear, she looked uncharacteristically vulnerable. Her arched eyebrows shot halfway up her forehead as she made eye contact with Nico. Her astonishment was probably the only thing that stopped her from instantly slamming the door shut.

“Nico? What the hell?”

A flashback to the last time she had popped in on Maki uninvited prompted Nico to snap out of it, and she hastily stuck her foot in the gap between the door and its frame before Maki could close it again. 

“Maki.” She struggled to make herself sound casual and failed spectacularly. It came out as more of a squeak than anything. This close to the other girl, she detected a whiff of the fruity scent Maki preferred - too faint to be perfume, it was probably just lotion, or maybe her shampoo.  _ God _ , Nico had missed her. Oops. Maki was glaring at her. Now was not the time to space out.

Nico cleared her throat. “Can we talk?”

The soft surprise on Maki’s face was melting away as she got over her initial shock. She didn’t close the door on Nico’s foot, which was a plus, but the anger that was seeping into her expression wasn’t exactly promising. “I’m busy. Besides, haven’t you heard of texting?” It hurt, to hear how cold her voice was in person. 

Nico attempted to peer around her. “Do you have a student with you or something?”

“No, but-” Maki sighed and even in her nervousness, Nico couldn’t help but feel a little pleased. She liked it when Maki slipped up. “What do you want, Nico?”

The grin slid off her lips as Nico remembered what she came to do. “Um,” she said, stalling, trying to slow the beat of her heart. She was almost annoyed to find that her knees were trembling a little. Since when did she become such a coward? “Can I come in?”

“No.” Maki’s refusal was swift, almost rehearsed. Nico cringed at the sharpness of her tone. Maki really wasn’t going to forgive her. In fact, she was lucky that the pianist had even opened the door for her at all. 

But she had to try anyway. 

“Look, Maki,” she began. “I know you don’t want to talk to me or see me anymore but I swear if you just let me talk to you one more time, I won’t bother you anymore.” The next words cut like knives as they left her throat, but true to her profession, she barely stumbled over her lines. “A-And if you want me out of your life forever after, I understand. But at least hear me out. Please.”

Nico squeezed her eyes shut and held her breath, praying with every cell in her body that Maki wouldn’t shut the door in her face. Stupid, since she wasn’t even sure what she wanted to say, but she was taking things one step at a time right now and would worry about that later. 

She heard Maki’s finger tap once, twice against the painted wood. Then, finally, “You have five minutes.” The door pulled open completely and the redhead stepped aside.

Nico exhaled sharply and gave a relieved nod. “Thanks.” She walked through the entrance quickly, before Maki could change her mind. She tried not to pay attention to how Maki recoiled when she brushed a little too close, instead concentrating on taking off her shoes and wishing she hadn’t decided to wear such nice but complicated heels to the screening. How was she supposed to know she’d end up  _ here _ of all places though?

She managed to get them off without too much awkwardness and straightened up, taking a proper look around the apartment for the first time in 8 weeks. Right away, she noticed that things were different.

Maki had always been a sparse decorator - which was a waste, because if Nico had such a large apartment she’d be sure to cover every inch with cute paraphernalia. But now, the few picture frames that had hung on the walls seemed to have disappeared, most likely packed into one of the three large cardboard boxes that lay haphazardly around on the carpet. In fact, the whole room looked incredibly bare, with various pieces of furniture pulled to the side, except for the gleaming black piano, which still stood stoutly in its corner.

Nico put two and two together and whirled around. “Are you  _ moving _ ?” she asked incredulously. She’d given much thought (more than she would’ve admitted) to what Maki had been up to in the time they weren’t speaking to each other, but leaving had never once crossed her mind.

Maki looked away. She was still lingering near the entrance, as if reluctant to get any closer to the actress. Her arms were crossed and her shoulders were hiked up, her whole body tensed and wary. “Yeah. I was in the middle of packing, actually.”

“Why? Where are you going?”

Maki jerked her head noncommittally. “Med school. Next prefecture over, where it’s quieter.”

“ _ What _ ?” Nico found herself stomping right over to Maki, examining her face, trying to find where the joke was. “What do you mean, med school? What about piano?”

Maki backed away as Nico approached, the stoicness of her expression slipping a little when her back hit the wall. “I didn’t keep a lot of students when we were working on the movie. And teaching…” She looked momentarily, choosing her words with care. “I’m not as interested as I used to be, I guess.”

“But since when did you want to be a  _ doctor _ ? I thought you hated that stuff?”

“It’s a worthy profession. And my parents are being very supportive.” Nico hated the dullness in Maki’s voice. Maki was snobby, Maki was cold, Maki was sharp like broken glass. This Maki, who didn’t seem to have a scrap of fight in her, wasn’t the pianist she knew. 

“You can’t mean that.” Nico put her hands on her hips and leaned forward, staring hard in hopes she could see exactly what was going through the other girl’s head. She had come over to talk to Maki, to apologize and tell her how she felt, but this bolt from the blue had pushed all other thoughts out of her head. “Maki, you love piano. You can’t leave.”

Maki’s jaw clenched visibly, and there was an undercurrent of anger in the next words she spoke. “ _ Oh _ ? Is that your professional opinion, Nico? Like, as an  _ actress _ ?”

“No, as a friend,” Nico shot right back. Spotting the opportunity, she leaned into Maki’s startled pause. “I’m not going to let you throw your life away, Maki. I know about the song from the movie. Why didn’t you ever tell me? Why aren’t you still composing?”

Maki’s brow crinkled in a familiar frown. She opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again in an impressive imitation of a fish. “Did Honoka tell you about that?”

Nico nodded. “She said you wrote that song for your ex back in college. You never said anything about that. Why?” When she saw Maki turning away again, she grabbed the pianist’s hand in her own and forced her to look at her. “Why?” she repeated insistently. 

Maki continued to avoid her gaze. “You wouldn’t understand,” she muttered, making a half-hearted attempt to shake off Nico’s grip. 

Nico held on tighter. “Tell me.”

The redhead rolled her eyes exasperatedly. “It’s ancient history, Nico. I dated her for awhile and then she got accepted into some early acting program in America, so we broke up. That’s it.” 

“But that doesn’t explain why you stopped composing!”

“I just didn’t  _ want _ to anymore, okay?” snapped Maki suddenly, finally raising her voice. She pulled away again, this time succeeding in snatching her hand away from Nico’s grasp. She glared reproachfully at the actress as she continued, “ _ You _ try writing music when the person you were writing for dropped everything, including you, to move across the world without even saying goodbye.” 

Taken aback by Maki’s outburst, Nico didn’t have a good reply. She let herself be pushed back, let Maki put some space between them and cross her arms again. “Now are you gonna keep giving me career advice? Or can I go back to packing?” The pianist turned on her heel, not waiting for an answer. She pulled open the door and held it open, nodding towards it with a careless flick of her chin. “Well?”

Nico swallowed. She was conscious of the feeling that she had made a mistake again, had once again failed to tell Maki what she really wanted to say. But she didn’t know. She didn’t know what she wanted to say, and she didn’t know how she felt. All she knew was that she couldn’t let Maki shut her out, not again. 

“Stay.” The word was like an instant anchor for her floundering panic, steadying her, giving her purpose. Maki paused, confused; maybe she hadn’t even heard it, because Nico had whispered it more than anything.

“Pardon?”

“ _ Stay _ .” Nico’s voice was more confident now, and she strode towards the redhead purposefully. She had found her script again, only there  _ was _ no script, just her stupid, pounding heart and the way it called out for Maki. She could only let it guide her. She placed a firm hand over Maki’s and pushed gently, closing the door with the other girl’s hand. “Don’t leave Tokyo, don’t leave your piano, don’t leave your friends. Don’t leave  _ me _ .”

“Nico-”

“ _ Please _ .” Nico pulled Maki’s fingers away from the doorknob and didn’t let go of them. She squeezed, praying the pianist would somehow just understand. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I left and I know it hurt and I’m sorry. I was an idiot. But I don’t wanna lose you. So please. Don’t go.” 

Maki gazed at Nico and there was doubt in her violet eyes, as if she couldn’t comprehend the language Nico was speaking. But she didn’t try to draw her arm back, so that was something. That was a start.

“Why do you care?” Maki asked harshly. But underneath it all, Nico detected a wavering, a hesitation. And that was what she was going to bet everything on. 

“Because,” she started, and it was so hard, the way Maki was looking at her and the way her knees were shaking, so hard to be honest and take a leap of faith into a potential abyss. 

She exhaled slowly, stalling, her eyes darting to the right for a brief moment as she tried to force the words out of her throat, and that was when she spotted something on the periphery of her vision.

It was a pile of blankets, sitting atop some drawers. Nico took a moment, but then she recognized them as the same blankets Maki had pulled out of her cabinet before leading the both of them up to the roof, that night before the movie’s final scene. She had thought it was kind of cute at the time, that Maki had obviously stored them near the door so she could grab them whenever she wanted. She remembered lying back against them, listening to Maki’s pretty voice as she showed off how many constellations she knew. That had been the first time she had looked at Maki and realized how much she wanted to be with her, wanted to look at the stars with her forever into the warm Autumn night. 

She turned to face Maki again. This time, she was calm. “Because I love you.” And it was simple after all, just three little syllables that nestled naturally on her tongue as if they had been created just so she could say them to the girl standing before her. 

It was almost gratifying to see the stunned look on Maki’s face. “You w-what?” she spluttered. She attempted to jerk her hand away, but Nico wasn’t about to let go, not until she had her say.

“I love you,” she repeated, clutching Maki’s wrist harder, marveling at how right the words felt. “And I… I want to know how you feel about me.”

A familiar blush bloomed over Maki’s cheeks, her brow still furrowed in confusion. “I-I don’t- If this is your idea of a joke-” 

“It’s not.” Nico looked straight at her, as sincerely as she could. “I’ve never been more serious about anything in my life.” 

Maki held her gaze, as if trying to gauge the truth of her words. Determined, Nico remained steady, desperately willing for Maki to give her a chance. Just for a moment, she seemed to waver.

Then, without warning, her eyes clouded over with mistrust again. She snatched her hand away and placed her forearms against Nico’s chest, forcing her to step back.

“No.”

“Maki? What-”

“No.” Maki repeated, more frantic now. She strode a short distance into the living room, almost aimlessly, until she settled herself down on the white couch pushed up against the wall, hugging her arms tightly to herself. “We can’t- I can’t do this. I’m leaving tomorrow, half my stuff is already in the new apartment, and I can’t give all that up just because  _ you _ had a change of heart.” 

Her accusatory tone stung more than expected. Of course, this wasn't a movie, and things weren't going to be resolved with a single, dramatic kiss. If she wanted to convince Maki not to leave, she'd have to try way harder.

Hesitantly, Nico trailed after the pianist, taking a seat beside her. She took the other girl’s hand again, gently this time, her thumb brushing against the soft skin. “Maki,” she said. “Look at me.” Maki turned her face reluctantly upward, her eyes watery. It was now or never.

“I don't know what happened between you and your college girlfriend. Obviously, she meant a lot to you. But- But I'm not like that, okay? I'm not gonna just take off without saying anything. Not again. I mean,” she continued, feeling her cheeks coloring, “I really, really like you. Like,  _ so _ much.”

Maki only looked at her. She didn't utter a word. But she didn't rip her hand away and tell Nico to get out of her apartment either. That was progress, right? Nico could only hope that it was. She cautiously shuffled a little closer.

“I ran away before. And I'm sorry, I shouldn't have. I was only thinking about myself. But I didn't really understand how I felt about you, not until I called you. And I realized… I realized how much you mean to me. And how I can't give that up.” 

She stopped, waiting for a response, but Maki's expression was inscrutable. Nico was out of words, out of tricks, out of ideas. She studied the other girl's long eyelashes, the elegant shape of her cheekbones, and wondered if this would be the last time she ever saw them. 

“And the next time?” Maki's voice was so quiet that it took Nico a few seconds to register that she had spoken at all.

“Next time?” she echoed, not understanding.

“Next time.” The pianist closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again. “Next time someone takes a picture and it gets uploaded somewhere. Or, next time someone asks about our relationship and you say we’re ‘just friends.’ Next time you get a starring role in some movie, only this time they want to fly you out to a different country to film it. What then, Nico?”

“I…” Nico’s mouth went dry as she searched for an answer and found none. “I don’t know.”

“I thought so.” Maki sighed and withdrew her hand from Nico’s grasp. “Face it, Nico. This… thing between us. It’ll never work. So could you please just let it go?”

Tears prickled behind Nico’s eyes. “I don’t  _ want _ to let it go,” she whispered, but Maki was already turning away. Her mind raced for some sort of sign, some sort of way she could show Maki that this was real. 

In the end, pure desperation won out. “Maki,  _ wait _ .” She grabbed at Maki’s elbow as the pianist made a movement to get up, and with her other hand fished her phone out of her purse. 

Maki frowned in consternation. “What are you doing?”

Nico found what she was looking for and shoved the screen right under Maki’s nose. “Look. 80 thousand followers.” It was her Twitter profile. She had spent years cultivating it, offering insightful criticism on movies, helpful advice on skincare, and cryptic snippets into her day-to-day life for her adoring fans. She was a social media expert and made sure each tweet was relevant to her brand. Even the posts that looked like excited outbursts had been in reality carefully planned, right down to the punctuation and intentional misspellings. 

The redhead blinked. “Um, okay?”

“80 thousand,” Nico insisted, a little hysterically. “Definitely more, once the movie gets released. Nico’s gonna be even more famous than she already is.”

“Are you just trying to brag about how popular you are?” 

Nico shook her head and took a deep breath. Nozomi was totally going to kill her for this. The agent had never bothered monitoring her social media activity because Nico usually did such a good job. After this, that was probably going to change. But she didn’t see any other way. 

“I’m going to tell them all that I love you.” She let go of Maki so she could use both her thumbs. They were trembling so hard that for once, she was glad that she had auto-correct on.

“What!?”

Nico ignored her. “I’m… in love… with Maki Nishikino…” she read aloud as she typed. When she was done, she held up the phone for the pianist to see. 

Maki squinted at the screen. “But your movie-” she spluttered, looking rather alarmed as she seemed to finally understand that Nico was in earnest. 

“I don’t care anymore.” That wasn’t true; Nico cringed and attempted to correct herself. “I mean, I do care. But I also don’t? I mean-” Oh boy, here came the tears. She sniffed in vain to stop them from flooding over, but she was beyond overwhelmed at this point and it was basically a miracle that she was still speaking coherently at all. “I mean I care, but I care about  _ you _ more!” she managed to wail.

Maki inched closer nervously now, her eyes wide. “Nico, you don’t have to do that,” she warned. “Put the phone down-”

Nico backed away, holding her hand up to stop the pianist from advancing any further. “I-It’s fine if you don’t feel the same way. But I just want you to know that I’m serious about this, and I-I’m not gonna run away again-” She paused, jerking her head to the right so she could wipe the tears (and no small amount of snot) away on her shoulder. “And if I have to tell the whole world for you to believe me then… Then I will!” 

“Nico, no!”

She pressed down and felt her thumb hit the glass even as Maki lunged for her, knocking the smartphone out of her hands. Nico lost her balance and they both tumbled down onto the carpet, the phone landing a short distance away with a thump. 

The two of them laid there, dazed, for a moment. Nico had fallen in an awkward position that was almost certainly going to bruise her backside tomorrow. Wincing, she sat up, then spotted her phone on the floor, screen still lit. She grabbed it as Maki sat up too, wondering if people were already noticing the post, afraid of what they were saying.

Maki untangled herself from Nico’s limbs and peered over the actress’ shoulder as Nico examined the screen. Instead of posting, the tweet now had a “xcdv” tacked on at the end. Nico stared, slowly coming to the realization that in the turmoil her thumb must have missed the “tweet” button.

Maki exhaled audibly. “Thank god,” she muttered, sounding peeved. “That was stupid, Nico.”

“I’m sorry, I’ll post it for real-”

“Stop!” Maki grabbed her wrist hastily, before she could try again. “Could you just slow down for a second?” 

Nico jumped at the feeling of Maki’s warm fingers against her skin. She peered into those flashing, violet eyes and felt paralyzed, all her prior determination dissipating. Maki took the opportunity to gently take the phone from her and put it carefully aside.

“That’s your problem, Nico,” she went on. “You’re always rushing into things.”

Nico’s lower lip started trembling again, despite her best efforts at not bursting into tears again. Her plan had not only backfired; it had only seemed to make the pianist angrier. “Do you really hate me that much, Maki?”

At that Maki cocked her head, her brows pinching towards the center of her forehead. “You think… I hate you?” she asked slowly, in a puzzled tone. 

Now Nico was confused too. “Why else would you want me gone so badly?”

Maki stared at her. The clock on the wall ticked merrily into the subsequent silence as Nico gazed back, afraid of what would come next.

Then, Maki groaned. She buried her face in her hands in an exasperated fashion as Nico looked on, bewildered. 

“This is exactly what’s so annoying about you!” Maki snapped when she finally raised her head again. There were small red imprints in her skin where her fingers had dug in. “From the very start you dragged me along at your pace, with your movies and your innuendos and your stupid cutesy photos. You made assumptions and expected everyone to just follow along and you know what the worst part was?”

Nico squeezed her eyelids shut. This was it, the part where Maki told her to get out of her life forever. She waited for the guilloutine to fall, cutting her silly hopes for love and romantic fulfillment short.

“The worst part was - I liked you anyway.”

Nico’s heart stopped.

Her eyes shot open wide and she looked up quickly, sure she had misheard. But there was Maki, a pink tinge in her cheeks, and the barest hint of a smile playing about her lips. 

“Y-You what?”

Maki took a shuddering breath. “You know,” she began, “I was really happy when you invited me to the after-party, and I missed you a lot when we weren’t talking. Wait, let me finish.” Nico, who had opened her mouth to voice her disbelief, promptly closed it.

Maki appeared embarrassed and uncomfortable as she continued. “Look, when I first met you, I thought you were exactly like my ex. Selfish, arrogant, fake. She wasn’t exactly the greatest person.” She paused for a second, then shook her head. “But, you were actually her exact opposite. You worked so hard, even though you totally didn’t understand how piano worked, and you liked movies so much, and you were always so passionate. About  _ everything _ . And, I don’t know. I really liked that, that you  _ cared _ so much about your job, and your family, and whatever. It made me feel like you even cared about me.” 

“I  _ do _ care-”

“Not done yet!” Maki glared at her and waited for her to shut her mouth before starting up again. “I really liked you too. So when you left so quickly after… that night, I was really hurt. I thought you were abandoning me for basically no reason, just like my ex did. Honestly, I didn’t think you’d ever contact me again. So when you called me, I pushed you away. Because I was scared. I didn’t want to get hurt again.”

Nico listened, feeling more and more guilty with each passing moment. She hadn’t realized just how sensitive Maki was, beneath that cool exterior.

“I regretted it about five minutes later, but I figured it was for the best. I thought you’d get over it, especially when I heard about how busy you were getting. I was trying my best to get over it too, with moving and going back to school. And then, on the day right before I was going to leave Tokyo, you showed up at my door without any explanation. Well, barged your way in, really.” She chuckled a little, but then grew serious again. “And you cornered me and said a lot of things and well, you made me start thinking that maybe, just maybe… you weren’t the type to just leave others behind.”

Nico’s breathing stilled as Maki gave her a pointed look. She knew that this was her chance to make things right now, but all she could think about was how Maki had said she liked her, and how happy that made her feel. 

“I was stupid. I’m sorry,” she said again, clenching her fists, willing her nerve not to fail her. “Do you forgive me?”

Maki nodded shyly. “Yes. I forgive you.” 

“And…” Nico swallowed hard, her heart thumping wildly. “Do you still like me?”

Maki’s eyes sparkled, but she didn’t answer. Nico wondered if she was ever going to be able to breathe again, or if her lungs had just collapsed completely at this point.

Then, the pianist reached out with both hands, pressing her palms to Nico’s cheeks and pulling her in. Their lips met tenderly in the middle, hesitant and sweet, like every first kiss in Nico’s favorite romance movies, like the kiss she had always dreamed of having. 

“Yes,” Maki whispered into her mouth. “I like you.” 

Heat bloomed in Nico’s chest, so warm and so joyful that she would have gasped, if she hadn’t otherwise been occupied with kissing the girl in front of her. She surged forward, pushing Maki back against the carpet, nearly laughing from the giddiness that had suddenly sprung up within her. Maki forgave her. Maki liked her. Maki was  _ here _ , and her arms were shifting lower, wrapping around Nico’s waist and squeezing, hugging her close. 

“I like you too,” Nico said when she finally surfaced for breath. She looked down at Maki’s face in wonder, still scarcely able to comprehend that all this was real. The redhead blushed, unable to stop a sheepish grin from spreading over her features. 

“Kiss me again,” she muttered in reply, and Nico obliged, capturing those perfect lips with her own. She never wanted to stop. This was where she  _ belonged _ , pressed up against Maki’s body, her tongue stealing out now tentatively to taste the bland chapstick she had on. Maki moaned quietly and gripped Nico tighter, her fingers ghosted under Nico’s shirt and against the skin of her back. The actress gasped and arched into the unexpected touch.

They continued to kiss, slow and heavy, completely different from their drunken tryst two months ago. That had been so hazy at the time, so distant, but this? This was crystal clear, every detail - every small murmur of pleasure, the minute movement of Maki’s lips, the way she squirmed beneath Nico’s weight. 

“ _ Nico _ ,” Maki hissed, and she rolled her hips upward. Nico groaned at the sudden, desperate pressure that sunk into her lower torso. Maki’s lips moved to the smaller girl’s ear, her breath hot. “Do you remember where my bedroom is?”

The blood pounded in Nico’s veins. “I-I think so,” she stuttered. Maki moved under her, and Nico reluctantly shifted so that she could sit up. The redhead grabbed her hand, helping Nico up onto her feet as she rose.

Just like before, Maki led the way. There was no haste this time, no alcohol-infused sense of urgency, just their own bashful desire to touch each other. Nico followed nervously, only slightly reassured by the fact that, judging from her sweaty palm, Maki was nervous too. She looked so cute as she turned, just before they crossed the threshold, blushing up to her ears.

“W-We don’t have to, uh…” Her gaze darted down, then up again. “We can take it slower,” she clarified primly. 

Nico smirked, immediately feeling more confident.

“Maki?” She waited until Maki made eye contact with her. “You’re adorable.”

She didn’t bother pausing for a response but looped her arms around Maki’s neck and kissed her again. Maki made a small sound of surprise as they moved into the room, carried by the momentum, and ended up sprawling backward against her wide bed. 

Lazy heat pooled between them from their mingled breaths. She licked a thin line across Maki’s lips, gently sucking on the other girl’s tongue when she finally opened her mouth. Maki whined low in her throat and she bunched the fabric of Nico’s blouse in her fists. Of  _ course _ Maki would be a needy lover. Nico could hardly suppress a smug smile. 

“I love you so much,” she murmured, planting a kiss on the redhead’s collarbone. Maki squirmed, bending her knee upward to rub up against Nico’s groin, and Nico automatically ground down. The friction sent a buzzing pleasure coursing through her body. 

Her hands skimmed lower, finding the edges of Maki’s t-shirt. She tugged questioningly, and when Maki gave a nod more felt than seen, she began rolling the piece of clothing upwards. Maki’s hands let go of Nico’s blouse for a moment, but only so that they could guide Nico as she pulled the shirt over the pianist’s head. 

She couldn’t help but stare. She hadn’t gotten a proper look the last time she had been in this position, because it had been dark and she had been otherwise preoccupied already. She was glad that she had time now, to appreciate the planes and curves of Maki’s torso, the dip of her cleavage that her plain, black bra was barely hiding. 

Maki nudged her, rocking her hips from side to side. “What?” she demanded, as if she didn’t know damn well what Nico was hung up about. Nico just shook her head a little.

“You’re so pretty,” she whispered as she pressed a hand against the other girl’s stomach and marveled at the softness. She slid her palm upwards, over the fabric of Maki’s bra, following the line of it until she reached the clasp in the back and unhooked it. She helped Maki shrug off the straps and laid the garment carefully aside.

The afternoon sunlight, filtered by the drawn curtains on the other side of the room, casted deep shadows across Maki’s body. Her breasts were full and bare, and Nico’s mouth went dry as Maki turned her head self-consciously, exposing the delicate arc of her neck. 

“ _ So _ pretty,” Nico repeated in awe. 

Maki flushed an even brighter shade of pink. “Aren’t you a little overdressed?” she asked in an attempt at distraction, her fingers playing with the fringe of Nico’s blouse. 

Nico smiled sweetly. “Aww, you don’t like this top? It’s my favorite one!”

The pianist’s violet eyes narrowed and her hands went lower. Nico’s breath hitched as her slender fingers trailed against her thigh sensuously. “I’d like it better off.”

Nico couldn’t argue with that. She took her hands off Maki’s waist and grabbed the bottom of her shirt, pulling it over her head in one smooth motion. She let it fall to the floor, then turned her attention back to Maki. “Happy now?”

Maki opened her mouth, probably to deliver a clever reply, but Nico was done waiting. She had been patient for long enough. She leaned in and pressed her parted lips over Maki’s pink left nipple, her tongue flicking out, and whatever Maki had been about to say turned into a broken cry of arousal. 

Nico dragged her tongue across the surface of the other girl’s skin, tasting sweat and soap. She kept her gaze trained on Maki even as she laid a wet line of kisses down her chest and stomach. Maki’s eyelids fluttered shut and she tossed her head, tensing with every touch of Nico’s lips as she went lower, lower. 

She hooked two fingers under the band of Maki’s sweatpants, pulling them down swiftly when she felt no objection. Maki kicked them off, and she was left in nothing but her underwear, looking shy and unsure. 

“Maki.” Nico loved the way the name felt against her tongue, wanted to say it over and over again like a prayer. “Is this okay?” When Maki nodded, Nico rubbed two fingers down the front of her panties. They were soaked through. Deep within Nico, a fire roared to life.

She tugged down the underwear quickly, and they followed the same fate as Maki’s pants tossed carelessly somewhere onto the floor. And finally, finally all of Maki was bared to her, and Nico was sure that there was nothing in the world more beautiful. 

She wasted no time in pressing her lips to the sticky spot between Maki’s legs, reveling at the wanton whimper that elicited, the way Maki’s muscles clenched instinctively. A bittersweet tang flooded into Nico’s mouth as Maki parted her thighs further, giving all of herself up. 

“Oh god,” breathed Maki incoherently. She was so sensitive, so slick already, and when Nico’s tongue pushed into her, Maki’s hands leapt to her head, pushing her down, entreating her to go harder. 

Nico obliged, gripping of Maki’s thighs to steady her, hold her still as she probed deeper. Maki tasted so fucking  _ good _ , she tasted like salt and sex and love and Nico knew she could get addicted, maybe already was addicted. In that moment, she wanted nothing more than to stay here forever between Maki’s legs, drinking her in, drowning in her.

But Maki rolled her hips more desperately now, gripped at Nico’s hair possessively and pulled. “Nico,  _ please _ ,” she whimpered, and Nico held her tongue flat indulgently against Maki’s clit as the redhead threw her head back.  

Maki came shudderingly, a long whine escaping her lips as she arched her spine. Nico closed her eyes and simply let Maki move against her mouth, thrilling at the other girl’s ragged gasps as she rode out the orgasm.

It was a long time before Maki finally stilled. Nico lifted her head when she felt Maki’s hands petting lightly at her hair. The pianist’s cheeks were completely red, and she was still panting heavily as Nico dragged herself upwards to face her.

“Well?” Nico prompted, barely able to contain her glee. “How was Nico-nii’s technique?”

Maki rolled her eyes, even as her chest heaved from the exertion. Without warning, she grabbed Nico’s still-wet face with both hands and pulled her, planting a fierce kiss upon her lips that caught Nico off-guard. 

“It was fine,” she mumbled when she pulled away again. Nico grinned complacently.

“ _ Just _ fine? Face it, Maki, Nico just gave you the best orgasm of your life-”

Nico didn’t get to finish her sentence. Maki threw her arms around her neck and dragged her in for another kiss, this time biting down on Nico’s lower lip. Nico yelped as she felt her world go sideways, and before she understood what was going on, she found herself flat on her back against the sheets with Maki hovering above her. 

Maki took Nico’s chin in her palm, tilting her head up. “You talk too much,” she muttered. Her hot breath blew over Nico’s cheeks.

Nico stared back unwaveringly, her pulse quickening under the other girl’s searing gaze. “What are you gonna do about it?” she quipped, smirking suggestively.

“This.” Maki bent down and dug her teeth roughly into the delicate flesh of Nico’s neck. Nico hissed, half in pain and half in pleasure, as the redhead sucked hard. That was going to leave a mark. The thought only excited Nico further. 

Maki’s lips let go with a wet pop. She sat up, straddling Nico’s waist, and Nico moaned at the dampness she felt smearing against her skin. All over again, she felt the desire growing in her lower body, the burning  _ need _ for Maki to touch her. 

“Maki…” she whined, unable to keep a tremble out of her voice. She was painfully conscious of how much she was at Maki’s mercy, how Maki was the only person who could make her feel this way. 

Thankfully, Maki didn’t keep her in suspense. “Bra,” she commanded, and when Nico lifted her torso, the other girl reached around and undid the clasp smoothly. Nico was about to make some joking, embarrassed comment about the admittedly small size of her chest, but there was a heat in Maki’s glittering eyes that made it stick in her throat. Yeah, Maki  _ definitely _ didn’t care. 

Her hands skimmed across Nico’s sides before settling lightly against her breasts, brushing against the hardened nipples there. Nico cried out at the sensation, which only encouraged Maki to take one between two fingers and pinch gently.

Hot arousal shot straight down to her groin. Nico twisted the sheets in her fists, her hips straining upward against Maki’s weight. “ _ Touch me _ ,” she begged, not sure if she was saying the words or simply mouthing them. Maki understood either way, because she shifted further down on the bed now, fingers fumbling at the zipper on Nico’s skirt. A second later and it was down at Nico’s ankles, and then discarded. 

Nico shuddered as Maki’s fingers entered her.  _ God _ , she was so wet, wetter than she could have imagined. Just the slightest movement was enough to make the pressure build deep in her body.

“Right there, Maki, oh  _ fuck _ , keep going-” Maki crooked her fingers and Nico lost the ability to speak entirely. She was so close already, and Maki could obviously tell because she increased her pace, slamming into her again and again without holding back, and it was so  _ good _ -

Nico tried her best to draw it out. She really did. But when Maki’s lips latched onto her clit at the same time she slid a third finger inside, she lost what tenuous control she had. She nearly screamed as she climaxed messily, grinding into Maki’s hot, irresistible mouth. Maki kept her hand firmly in place, never once taking her eyes off Nico.

The world eventually stopped spinning. Nico’s heartbeat slowed fractionally as she inhaled slowly, and when she finally ceased trembling, Maki pulled her fingers away, leaving a wet trail on Nico’s thigh. The redhead scooted back up and laid down next to her.

Nico turned her head, her breath still ragged. Maki’s wide-eyed gaze was tender and vulnerable as she stared searchingly at Nico’s features. Nico rolled over onto her side to face her as well. 

“That was so good,” Nico panted. She buried her nose into the crook of Maki’s neck and hugged her tight. “ _ So _ good.”

Maki hugged her back. “Yeah,” she agreed, equally eloquent. When Nico peeked up at her, she saw contentment and happiness. Nico’s heart swelled with love.  

“Thank you,” she whispered. She reached out a hand and cupped Maki’s cheek. “Thank you so much for giving me a second chance. Even after I was so dumb.”

Maki smiled shyly in return. “Thanks for not giving up,” she answered.

They rested there together, sitting up against the headboard under the covers, watching the shadows get longer as the sun began to set. Nico dimly recognized that she should at least give Nozomi a call and let her know she wouldn’t be joining the gang for after-screening drinks, but then again, the agent was smart. She could figure it out herself. Plus, Nico wasn’t up for doing anything other than cuddling right now. 

“You know,” Maki said, after a few minutes of satisfied silence. “Honoka asked me if I wanted to compose for her next film.” 

Caught by surprise, Nico straightened a little and gaped. “She did?”

Maki nodded. “Before filming wrapped. We were talking and she asked me if I would consider helping her.” She cast her eyes up to the ceiling. “I was considering saying yes, but after what went down between us, I just wanted to get out of Tokyo.” She paused, then looked back at Nico again. “But I think… I might have changed my mind again.” 

Nico’s heart skipped a beat. Was that- She didn’t want to jump to conclusions but- Did Maki mean-

“So you’re going to stay? Here?”

The pianist nodded again, blushing. “I guess I am.”

For a long moment, Nico simply gaped at her. Then, as reality dawned on her, she broke out into a wide grin. She launched herself sideways, throwing her arms around Maki and squeezing hard.

“I love you!” She planted a huge kiss on Maki’s cheek. Then another one on her cute nose. “I love you so much!”

“Stop, that tickles!” But Maki was laughing even as she pretended to protest, and in the end she dipped her head and pressed her mouth to Nico’s. They kissed slowly, sweetly, simply enjoying the feeling of their lips moving against one another. 

“So…” Nico ventured, when they finally pulled apart. “Does that mean we’re dating?”

Maki giggled. “Yes, we’re dating.” 

“And you’re my girlfriend?”

“Yes, Nico.”

“Okay good, because I’ve always wanted to try having sex on top of a piano and-”

Maki swatted her hand. “Don’t push your luck.” But her voice was warm. 

Girlfriend. Maki was Nico’s girlfriend. Nico grinned as she repeated the idea over and over again in her head, warming to it. She stiffened, though, as she remembered the movie - and all it entailed.

She pulled back. Maki noticed her sudden trepidation and furrowed her forehead. “What?”

“You know,” Nico said slowly, taking Maki’s hand and running her thumb over the back of it. “I’m going to be… famous soon. Probably.” Maki blinked to show she understood. “And that means, well, we can’t really be public about this. At least, not yet.”

Maki pondered the revelation briefly. Then she dipped her head in agreement. “That’s fine. I wouldn’t want to hurt your career. And plus, we can at least tell Honoka. And Nozomi, I suppose. She’s dating that blonde woman from marketing, right?”

Nico smirked at that; Maki was perceptive. Her humor disappeared though, as she resolved to make sure Maki knew what she was getting into. She didn’t want to make any mistakes again. “And well, I’m an actress. That means I might be traveling a lot and I won’t always be in Tokyo. I’ll come back, of course, but… Sometimes I might be gone for a long time.” She held her breath, waiting for Maki’s response. 

For awhile, Maki just looked at her. Nico attempted to read her expression, wondering what she was thinking. Then, the pianist simply shrugged. 

“I know. And it’ll be hard. But…” She looked resolutely at Nico then, not a trace of doubt in her features. “I want to try.” 

Nico couldn’t help herself. Tears welled up in her eyes. Maki looked alarmed. “A-Are you crying?” 

“Noooo…” Nico wailed. She wiped at her eyes hastily, then gave up and flung herself onto Maki again. “I just love you so much.”

Maki’s arms circled around her tightly. “Me too.” Then, in a quieter voice, she added, “I love you too.”

Nico sunk into Maki’s embrace, feeling safe and sound for the first time in months. Maki’s creamy skin fit so right against her own. They kissed again, and it felt like coming home. 

Nico wasn’t sure about what lay of ahead of them. She knew that it wouldn’t always be like this, full of joy and acceptance and understanding. Sne knew that it would be tough, that they’d probably fight, and there would be lonely stretches of weeks where they couldn’t talk at all. They were both stubborn in their own way, and they would both have to learn how to love each other.

But, she reflected, even as she brushed Maki’s hair behind one ear, she knew one thing for certain.

No matter the heartbreak, no matter the troubles, no matter the misunderstandings that were in their future - 

It would all be worth it.


	7. Coda

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coda: the concluding passage of a piece or movement, typically forming an addition to the basic structure.

Maki checked her watch for the 10th time. She knew, logically, that she had no reason to; the monitor on the wall clearly said the flight had landed on time, and any minute now the passengers would be appearing at the arrival gate. But she hated waiting around aimlessly, and she was feeling uncharacteristically anxious. She had paced the airport’s tacky museum, picked through the gift shop postcards, and finished off an entire coffee already - she had just about reached the limits of her patience.

A cheer rang out as a ragged line of sleepy-looking men and women began making its through the opaque glass doors and into the lobby. Maki snapped to attention, getting to her feet and striding forward quickly. She scanned their faces, searching for the one she wanted. Around her, relatives greeted each other and friends patted one another on the back. One little boy ran squealing towards his father, who scooped him up and twirled him around, laughing uproariously. Maki’s lips twitched briefly as she watched, before she turned her focus back on the rest of the people walking in. 

She spotted the ridiculous pigtails first. They bounced up and down in the air, the only visible part of the diminutive girl who could barely be seen over the heads of the other passengers. When the crowd thinned a little, Maki could see her more clearly, although sunglasses and a thick, white face mask obscured most of her features. 

That didn’t matter to Maki. She’d recognize Nico anywhere.

Her entire body tensed and she leaned forward. It took all of her willpower to not start waving furiously, like some kind of idiot. She simply stood there, rooted to the spot, waiting for Nico to see her. From this distance, the actress didn’t look like she had changed much, which was a relief. Nico was the type to forget to eat when she was working too hard.

Nico finally noticed her. She came to a halt as she seemed to register Maki’s presence, pushed her sunglasses up to check, and when she had confirmed it really was Maki standing there, she practically broke into a run, dragging her luggage haphazardly behind her. 

“Maki!” she shouted. Several heads turned to look, but Maki didn’t care. She opened her arms wide as Nico crashed into her and pulled her into a tight hug.

Maki squeezed hard. She had missed this  _ so _ much. If Nico hadn’t been wearing a mask, and if they weren’t in broad daylight she would’ve kissed her immediately. She settled for breathing in deep, losing herself in the familiar scent of Nico’s shampoo.

Nico was babbling excitedly. “You came! I thought you weren’t coming? Didn’t you have some meeting or something? Oh my god, I thought I was going to have to take the train all the way back to Tokyo by myself. The Philippines were  _ so _ hot, Maki, if I have to see one more mosquito ever again I’m gonna- oh and I got you presents-” She pulled back, pausing mid-sentence, and gave the redhead a funny look. “Maki? Are you okay?”

Maki blinked. She shook her head to stop her lower lip from trembling and instead made herself smile. “Yeah. It’s just- It’s good to see you again.” 

The corners of Nico’s eyes crinkled as, presumably, a sly grin spread over her face, and Maki instantly regretted being so candid.

“Maki missed me~” the actress teased, and Maki rolled her eyes. Good to know her girlfriend was as infuriating as ever.

“Give me your bag, you idiot.” Nico handed it over gladly, and Maki began rolling it across the smooth, waxed floor. Nico followed, a skip in her step as she took Maki’s arm and clung to it.

“I have  _ so _ much to tell you,” she exclaimed as they made their way towards the exit. “This movie is gonna be so good Maki, I can feel it. We wrapped up the action parts so now all that’s left are the scenes in Tokyo…” She went on, but Maki barely registered what she was saying because Nico was  _ back _ . A warm rush of pure joy rose in her chest. Nico was  _ here _ .

“...And then we went diving and there were these really pretty fish except I dropped my disposable camera so I couldn’t get any pictures but trust me, they were, like, rainbow-colored!” Nico finally stopped for breath. She had so much energy, even after three weeks abroad, and she hummed happily to herself as they boarded the elevator down to the subway platform. 

Maki looked down at the girl by her side. There were no words to describe the fondness she felt, the overwhelming love and affection gripping her heart as Nico finally pulled off her mask and beamed at her. Even after a year and a half, she looked just as beautiful.

“Nico?” Maki murmured.

“Hmm?” Nico’s eyelashes fluttered.

Maki shifted, nudging Nico’s arm gently until the actress straightened it out. She laced their fingers together, loving the way their palms brushed.

“Welcome home.” 

Nico’s eyes widened for a moment. Then, she smiled, that million-watt smile that Maki would never grow tired of, not if she saw it every single day for the next fifty years.

“I’m home.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try to keep this short!!!  
> All definitions in the chapter notes were taken from a mix of definitions from Google and explanations on Wikipedia. I picked and chose what definitions suited me for the most part, which is why I didn't feel comfortable putting a direct source (and also why they're in the chapter notes and not the summary.  
> Thank you for reading this far. This was the first long-form work I've ever done in my life and I'm so relieved that I actually managed to make it all this way. At times I really felt like I wanted to quit, but thanks to the support of the people around me and of course, my undying, burning love for NicoMaki, I was able to pull through!  
> I would like to thank AO3 user korewa, my best friend, my beta reader, my editor, and my emotional pillar for helping me. It's no exaggeration to say that without her, this fic would not exist. She kept me honest, cheered me on, and challenged me to write better. If you enjoyed this at all, please keep her in your mind.  
> There are others I'd like to thank, for their comments, for their encouragement, for music suggestions that kept me going. Thank you all so much for waiting on me and believing in me!  
> This definitely isn't the end of NicoMaki for me. They've taught me so much and have really helped me develop as both a writer and a person. I look forward to writing them again in the near future - maybe even something long again! Who knows?  
> Till then, so long, and thank you again!


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